^LIBRARY OF CONGRESS.? 

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EXTRACTS 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE 



or THE LATE 



AMOS LAWRENCE: 

/I 

WITH A 

BRIEF ACCOUN'T OF SOME INCIDENTS TN HIS LIFE. 

Bliitrt in Ijis Son, 

WILLIAM K. LAWRENCE, M.D. 



NOT PUBLISHED. 



BOSTON; 

PRINTED BY JOHN WIl,SON & SON, 

22, School Stueet. 

1855. 



CP-J ^ 



M 38 



Kutvrad^ accoMins to Arl of CongrreSs iu the yMr lSo5, by 

WILUAM ». LAVTREXCE, 

111 tho Oli-rk's OWoe of Ui« WstrKt Ooiirl of the Distik t of Msssschusotts. 



u 1 s () N I, V s u R V 1 V 1 N (i I! i; or ii v. k 



AMOS A. LAWllENCE, 



(J bis lloliimr is ;i(tcclioii;ilcIii SInsdiluii 



iiv iiiK Kiiirdu. 



P R E F A C E . 



Soon after the decease of the late Amos Lawrence, it was 
announced that some memorial of him would be published, giving 
a detailed account of his life and character. This announcement 
was made rather to gratify those friends who thought that such a 
record would prove useful to young men about entering upon the 
active duties of life, than from a desire for such a publication 
on the part of those most interested by the ties of family and 
aflfection. 

After a careful examination of Mr. Lawrence's papers, his 
executors were convinced that a memorial which should do justice 
to the dead would involve the record of many details of a domestic 
nature most nearly concerning the living. 

Mr. Lawrence was a private citizen, who pursued the even 
tenor of his way, Without taking an active part in public measures 
or in public life. To the general reader, there could be but little 
to interest in a career so devoid of incident, and so little connected 
with the stirring events of the times. 

Most of his letters are of a strictly private nature, and involve 
the record of many private details. His domestic tastes, and his 
affection for his family, often led him to make mention of persons 
and events in such a way that few letters could be wholly given, 
without invading the precincts of the family circle. 



For tlic reasons above stated, it was thought best to abandon 
the plan of a published memoir, particularly as the discourses of 
the Rev. Dr. Lothrop and the Rev. Dr. Hopkins seemed to contain 
all necessary information respecting the life and character of the 
deceased. 

Two years had elapsed since Mr. Lawrence's death, when cer- 
tain facts respecting his wishes in relation to his diary and corre- 
spondence came to the knowledge of the editor. These writings 
had been carefully preserved for his grandchildren, but were so 
scattered through many manuscript volumes as to make them 
unavailable for those for whose use they were intended. As no 
one of the immediate family had the necessary leisure to undertake 
the task, the editor considered it his duty to do that which could not 
properly be committed to one less nearly connected with the de- 
ceased, lie has therefore prepared the present volume, in which 
he has endeavored to furnish such extracts as seemed to him most 
interesting, and best adapted to illustrate the character of the man ; 
such as would exhibit his good and valuable traits, without attempt- 
ing to conceal those imperfections, an exemption from which would 
elevate him above the common sphere of mortals. It is designed 
to give a history of his principal charitable efforts, rather tlian to 
furnish a detailed account of what was otherwise an uneventful 
career. 

It has been an object to allow the writer to tell his own story, 
and to add only what seemed necessary to preserve the thread of 
the narrative, and to throw light upon the various matters touched 
upon in the correspondence. 

In order that these writings may be preserved and made avail- 
able, a few copies have been printed for distribution among the 
near relatives of the deceased ; and, should any friend into whose 
hands this volume may fall have in his possession letters of interest 
from Mr. Lawrence, the editor would esteem it a favor to be per- 
mitted to copy them. 

In mentioning persons and events, more reserve has been used 



than if the collection had remained in manuscript, particularly 
where reference is made to persons still living, or to individuals in 
private life. 

While there is recorded but little to amuse, much will be found 
to interest those who can appreciate the spirit, which, in this 
instance, led to the consecration of a life to the highest duties, and 
to a rare fidelity in the fulfilment of important trusts. 

Mr. Lawrence was eminently a religious man ; and a deep 
sense of accountability may be discovered at the foundation of all 
those acts of beneficence, which, during his lifetime, may have been 
attributed by some to less worthy motives. 

The engraving at the commencement of this volume is from an 
original portrait by Harding, in the possession of the editor, a copy 
of which hangs in the Library building of Williams College. 

It seems fitting also, that, in a private record like the present, 
the portrait of the subject of this memorial should be accompanied 
by that of his brother, the Hon. Abbott Lawrence, who was, for 
forty-three years, so intimately associated with him in all the trials 
as well as in the triumphs of active business life, and who was still 
more closely connected by the bonds of fraternal affection and 
sympathy. 

A sketch of the " Old Home " is also included, in order to con- 
vey to the descendants a representation of the spot so dear to their 
predecessors, and so much connected with the memories and asso- 
ciations of the past. 

Boston, Ajiril 23, lS.5o. 



CONTENTS. 



CHAPTER I. 

rage. 

Ancestry. Bimh. Paeents 1 

II. 

Eakly YsAiis. School Days. ArPKENTicESHip 6 

III. 
Akmval in Boston. CLEBKSKir. Commences Business. Habits. 13 

IV. 

Business Habits. His Fathee's Moetoage. Resolutions. Aeei- 
VAL of Beotbees in Boston 20 

V. 

Visits at Groton. Sickness. Lettee feom De. Shattuck. En- 

OAOEMENT. Lettee TO Rev. De. Qannett. Maeeiage. ... 26 

VI. 

Beamble News. Domestic Habits. Illness op Wipe 33 

VII. 
Death op Wipe. Joueneys. Letters. Jocenet to New York. . 41 

VIII. 

Maeeiage. Elected to Leoislatuee. Engages in Manupactcrino. 

Reflections 46 

6 



X CONTENTS. 

Page. 
IX. 

Reflectioks. Letter. Bunkek-Hill Monument 51 

X. 

JouKNEY TO Canada. Letters. Diary. Habits of Exercise. . 58 

XI. 

Letters. Correspondence with Mr. Webster 64 

xn. 

Testimonial to Mr. Webster. Dangerous Illness. Letters. . . 70 

XIU. 

Journey to New Hampshike. Letters. Resigns Office of Trustee 
AT Hospital. Letters 77 

XIV. 

Daily Exercise. Regimen. Improving Health. Letters. ... 85 

XV. 

Reflections. Visit to Washington. Visit to Rainsford Island. 

Reflections. Views of Death. Reflections 94 

XVI. 

Brother's Death. Letters. Gifts. Letters. Diary. Appli- 
cants for Aid. Reflections. Letter from Rev. Dr. Stone. 
Diary .104 

XVU. 

Reflections. Letters. Account of Efforts to complete Bunker- 
Hill Monument 117 

xvin. 

Interest in Mount Auburn. Rev. Dr. Sharp. Letter from Bishop 
McIlvaine. Letter from Judge Story 126 

XLX. 

Acquaintance with President Hopkins. Letters. Affection for 
Brattlb-strbet Church. Death of Mrs. Appleion. Letters. 133 



CONTENTS. XI 

XX. 

Page. 
Death of Daughter. Letteks. Donation to Williams College. 

Beneficence. Letters 141 

XXI. 

Letter prom Dr. Sharp. Illness and Death op Son. Letters. 
Applictions 151 

xxu. 

Repleotions. Expenditures. Letters. Donation for Library at 
Williams College. Views on Study op Anatomy 160 

xxni. 

Donation to Lawrence Academy. Correspondence with R. G. 
Parker. Sleigh-rides. Letters. Establishes Children's Hos- 
pital. Aversion to Notoriety 168 

XXIV. 

Capt. a. S. McKenzie. Diaky. Aid to Ireland. Madame Pres- 

cott. Sir William Colebrooke 179 

XXV. 

Mr. Lawrence as an Applicant. Letters. Dlary. Prayer and 

Meditations. Liberality to a Creditor. Letters 188 

XXVI. 

Reflections. Views on holding Office. Letters. Capt. A. Sli- 

dell McKenzie. Death of Brother and of Hon. J. Mason. . 198 

xxvn. 

System in Accounts. Letter from Prop. Stuart. Letters. Diary. 

Father Matthew. Dr. Hamilton 207 

XXVIII. 

Codicil to Will. Illness. Gen. Whiting. Letters. Diary. . 214 

XXIX. 

Diary. Reflections. Sickness. Letier prom Dr. Sharp. Cor- 
respondence 221 



XU CONTENTS 

Paw. 
XXX. 

Ajitni 13et. AMor>-r of Donatioss to Williams College. . . . 228 

XXXI. 

Letteks. Dlaet 235 

XXXII. 

Sle T. F. BrxTON. Lettee tkom Lady Buxton. Elliott Cebssos. 

liSTTEBS 241 

XXXIII. 
Lettees. Ret. De. Scoresby. Wabash College 247 

XXXIV. 

Dlusy. Lettees. Thomas Taebell. Uscle Toby. Rev. De. 
Lowell. 253 

XXXV. 

COEEESPOXDENCE. DiARY 267 

xxx^^. 

Me. Laweexcb seetes as Feesidektiax Elector. Gex. Feaxklcc 
FtBSCB. Sudden Death. Funbeal 276 

xxxvn. 

Sketch op Character by Ret. Drs. Lotheoe and Hopkc-s. . . 285 

XXX vm. 

CoxcLrsiox 294 



INDEX 303 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 



CHAPTEE I. 

ANCESTRY. — BIRTH. — PARENTS. 

Amos Lawrence was born in Groton, Mass., on the 
22(1 of April, 1786. His ancestor, John Lawrence, 
was baptized, according to the records, on the 8th of 
October, 1609, at AVisset, County of Suffolk, England, 
where the family had resided for a long period, though 
originally from the County of Lancaster. 

Butler, in his "History of Groton," has, among 
other details, the following : — 

" The first account of the ancestor of the numerous fami- 
lies of this name in Groton and Pepperell, which can be 
relied upon as certain, is, that he was an inhabitant of 
Watertown as eaidy as 1635. He probably came in the 
company which came with Governor Winthrop in 1630. 
His given, name was John, and that of his wife was Eliza- 
beth. Whether they were married in England or not, has 
not been ascertained. Their eldest cliild was born in Water- 
town, Jan. 14, 1635. He removed to Groton, with probably 
1 



2 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

all his family, at an early period of its settlement, as his 
name is found in the records there in 1663. He was an 
original proprietor, having a twenty-acre right." 

Of the parents of the subject of this memoir, the 
same author writes : — 

" Samuel Lawrence, the son of Capt. Amos Lawrence, 
sen., was an officer in the Continental Army, in the former 
part of the Revolutionary War. He was in the battle of 
Bunker Hill, where a musket-ball passed through his beaver 
hat. He was also in the battle in Khode Island, where he 
served as adjutant under Gen. Sullivan. On the 22d day of 
July, 1777, being at home, on a furlough, for the express 
pui-pose, he was married to Susanna Parker. . . . Having f;iith- 
fully served in the cause of his country during the term of 
his engagement, he returned to his native town, to enjoy the 
peace and quiet of domestic life on his farm. He was elected 
by his townsmen to some of the highest offices in their gift : 
he was a deacon of the church, and a Justice of the Peace 
quorum unus. He took a deep interest in providing means 
for the education of youth, particularly in establishing and 
supporting the Seminai-y in Groton, which now, in gratitude 
to him and his sons, bears the family name. Of this institu- 
tion he was a trustee thirty-thi-ee years, and in its benefits 
and advantages he gave ample opportunities for all his chil- 
dren to participate. Here their minds undoubtedly received 
some of those early impressions, the developments and con- 
sequences of which it will be the work of their biographers 
hereafter to portray. No deduction, however, should here 
be made from the importance of parental instruction, to add 
to the merit of academical education. The correct lessons 
given by the mother in the nursery are as necessary to give 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 8 

the light inclination to the tender mind as are those of the 
tutor in the highest seminary to prepare it for the business 
of life and intellectual greatness. In the present case, all 
the duties incumbent on a mother to teach her offspring to 
be good, and consequently great, were discharged with fide- 
lity and success. Both parents lived to see, in the subject of 
their care, all that they could reasonably hope or desii-e. 
lie died Nov. 8, 1827, a;t. 73 ; and his venerable widow. 
May 2, 1845, at. 89." 

Mr. Lawrence writes, in 1849, to a friend: — 

" My father belonged to a company of minute men in Gro- 
ton, at the commencement of the Revolution. On the morn- 
ing of the 19th of April, 1775, when the news reached town 
that the British troops were on the road from Boston, Gen. 
Prescott, who was a neighbor, came towards the house on 
horseback, at rapid speed, and cried out, 'Samuel, notify 
your men: the British are coming.' My father mounted 
the General's horse, rode a distance of seven miles, notified 
the men of his circuit, and was back again at his father's 
house in forty minutes. In three hours the company was 
ready to march, and on the next day (the 20th) reached 
Cambridge. My father was in the battle of Bunker Hill ; 
received a bullet through his cap, which cut his hair firom 
front to rear; received a spent grape-shot upon his arm, 
without breaking the bone ; and lost a large number of men. 
His veteran Captain Farwell was shot through the body, was 
taken up for dead, and was so reported by the man who was 
directed to carry him off. This report brought back the 
captain's voice, and he exclaimed, with his utmost power, 
' It aint true ; don't let my poor wife hear of this ; I shall 
live to see my country free.' And so it turned out. This 



4 DIARY AND COR!iESPONDENCE. 

good man, \rlio had served at the capture of Cape Breton in 
1745, again in 1755, and now on Bunker Hill in 1775, is 
connected with every thing interesting in my early days. 
The bullet was extracted, and remains, as a memento, with 
his descendants. My father and mother were acquainted 
from their childhood, and engaged some time in 1775. 
They kept up a correspondence through 1776, when he was 
at New York ; but. on a visit to her in 1777 (his mother 
having advised them to be married, as Susan had better be 
Sam's widow than his forlorn damsel), they were married ; 
but, while the ceremony was going forward, the signal was 
given to call all soldiers to their posts ; and, within the hour, 
he left his wife, father, mother, and friends, to join his regi- 
ment then at Cambridge. This was on the 22d day of July, 

1777. In consideration of the circumstances, his colonel 
allowed him to return to his wife, and to join the army at 
Rhode Island in a brief time (two or three days). He did 
so, and saw nothing more of home until the last day of that 
year. The army being in winter quarters, he got a furlough 
for a short period, and reached home in time to assist at the 
ordination of the Rev. Daniel Chaplin, of whose church 
both my parents were then members. His return was a 
season of great joy to all his family. His stay was brief, 
and nothing more was seen of him until the autumn of 

1778, when he retired from the army, in time to be with his 
wife at the birth of their first child. From that time he was 
identified with every thing connected with the good of the 
town. As we children came forward, we were carefully 
looked after, but were taught to use the talents entrusted 
to us ; and every nerve was strained to provide for us the 
academy which is now doing so much there. We sons are 
doing less for education for our means than our father for his 
means." 



DIARY AN'D CORRESPOXDENCE. 



Of his mother, Mr. Lawrence always spoke m the 
strongest terms of veneration and love, and in many 
of his letters are found messages of affection, such 
as could have emanated only from a lieart overflowing 
with filial gratitude. Her form bending over their 
bed in silent prayer, at the hour of twUight, when 
she was about leaving them for the night, is stUl 
amonsj the earliest recollections of her children. 



CHAPTER II. 



EARLY YEARS. — SCHOOL DAYS. — APPREXTICESHIP. 



The first public instruction received by Mr. Law- 
rence was at the district school kept at a short dis- 
tance from his father's house. Possessing a feeble 
constitution, he was often detained at home by sick- 
ness, where he employed himself industriously with 
his books and tools, in the use of which he acquired 
a good degree of skill, as may be seen from a letter to 
his son at Groton, in 1839 : — 

" Near the bam used to be an old fort, where the people 
went to protect themselves from the Indians ; and, long since 
my remembrance, the old cellar was there, surrounded by 
flder-bushes and the like. I made use of many a piece of 
the elder for pop-guns and squirts, in the preparation of 
which I acquired a strong taste for the use of the penknife 
and jack-knife. I like the plan of a boy acquiring the taste 
for tools, and of their taking pains to learn their use ; for 
they may be so situated as to make a very slight acquaint- 
ance very valuable to them. And then, another advantage 
is that they may have exercise of body and mind in some 
situations where they would suffer without. How do you 
employ yourself ? Learn as much as you can of farming ; 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. i 

for the work of your hands in this way may prove the best 
resource in securing comfort to you. The beautiful images 
of early life come up in these bright moonlight nights, the 
like of which I used to enjoy in the fields below our old 
mansion, where I was sent to watch the cattle. There I 
studied astronomy to more account than ever afterwards ; 
for the heavens were impressive teachers of the goodness of 
that Father who is ever near to each one of his children. 
May you never lose sight of this truth, and so conduct your- 
self that at any moment you may be ready to answer when 
he calls ! " 

He did not allow himself to be idle, but, frOm his 
earliest years, exhibited the same spirit of industry 
which led to success in after-life. With a natural 
quickness of apprehension and a fondness for books, 
he made commendable progress in spite of his disad- 
vantages. His father's social disposition and liospita- 
ble feelings made the house a favorite resort for both 
friends and strangers ; and, among the most welcome, 
were old messmates and fellow-soldiers, to whose mar- 
vellous adventures and escapes the youthful listener 
lent a most attentive ear. In after-life, he often al- 
luded to the intense interest with which he hung 
upon these accounts of revolutionary scenes, and 
times which "tried men's souls." The schoolmaster 
was usually billeted upon the family ; and there are 
now living individuals high in political and social life 
who served in that capacity, and who look back with 
interest to the days passed under that hospitable 
roof 



8 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

At a later period, he seems to have been transferred 
to another school in the adjoining district, as will be 
seen by the following extract of a letter written in 
1844 to a youth at the Groton Academy: — 

" More than fifty years ago, your father and I were school 
children together. I attended then at the old meeting-house, 
or North Barn, as it was called, by way of derision, where I 
once remember being in great tribulation at having lost my 
spelling-book on the way. It was afterwards restored to me 
by Capt. Richardson, who found it under his pear-tree, where 
I had 'been, without leave, on my way to school, and with 
the other children helped myself to his fruit." 

From the district school, Mr. Lawrence entered the 
Groton Academy, of which all his brothers and sisters 
were members at various times. As his strength was 
not sufficient to make him useful upon the farm, in 
the autumn of 1799 he was placed in a small store 
in the neighboring towTi of Dunstable. There he 
passed but a few months ; and, on account of perhaps 
greater facilities for acquiring a knowledge of busi- 
ness, he was transferred to the store of James Brazer, 
Esq., of Groton, an enterprising and thrifty country 
merchant, who transacted a large business for these 
times with his own and surrounding towns. The 
store was situated on the high road leading from Bos- 
ton to New Hampshire and Canada, and was, conse- 
quently, a place of much resort both for travellers 
and neighbors who took an interest in passing events. 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 



Several clerks were employed ; and, as Mr. Brazer did 
not take a very active part in the management of the 
business, after a year or two nearly the whole respon- 
sibility of the establishment I'ested upon young Law- 
rence. The stock consisted of the usual variety kept 
in the country stores of those days, when neighbors 
could not, as now, run down to the city thirty or forty 
miles distant for any little matter of fancy, and return 
before dinner-time. Puncheons of rum and brandy, 
bales of cloth, kegs of tobacco, with hardware and 
hosiery, shared attention in common with silks and 
thread, and all other articles for female use. Among 
other duties, the young clerk was obliged to dispense 
medicines, not only to customers, but to all the physi- 
cians within twenty miles around, who depended on 
this store for their supply. 

The confidence in his good judgment was such that 
he was often consulted, in preference to the physician, 
by those who were suffering from minor ails ; and 
many was the extemporaneous dose which he admi- 
nistered for the weal or woe of the patient. The 
skme confidence was extended to him in all other 
matters ; no one doubted his assertion ; and the cha- 
racter for probity and fairness which accompanied 
him through life was here established. 

The quantity of rum and brandy sold would sur- 
prise the temperance men of modern days. At eleven 
o'clock, each forenoon, some stimulating beverage, ac- 
cording to the taste of the clerk who compounded it, 



10 DIARY AND CORRESPOXDENCE. 

was served out for the benefit of clerks and custom- 
ers. Mr. Lawrence partook with the others ; but, 
soon finding that the desire became more pressing at 
the approach of the hour for indulgence, he resolved 
to discontinue the habit altogether : — 

" His mind was soon made up. Understanding perfectly 
the ridicule he should meet with, and which for a time he 
did meet with in its fullest measure, he yet took at once the 
ground of total abstinence. Such a stand, taken at such an 
age, in such circumstances of temptation, before temperance 
societies had been heard of, or the investigations had been 
commenced on which they are based, was a practical instance 
of that judgment and decision which characterized him 
through life." * 

In regard to this resolution, he writes, many years 
afterward, to a young student in college : — 

" In the first place, take this for your motto at the com- 
mencement of your journey, that the difference of going jiut 
right, or a little wrong, wUl be the difference of finding your- 
self in good quarters, or in a miserable bog or slough, at the 
end of it. Of the whole number educated in the Groton 
stores for some years before and after myself, no one else, 
to my knowledge, escaped the bog or slough ; and my escape 
I trace to the simple fact of my having put a restraint upon 
my appetite. We five boys were in the habit, every fore- 
noon, of making a drink compounded of rum, raisins, sugar, 
nutmeg, &c., with biscuit, — all palatable to eat and diink. 
After being in the store four weeks, I found myself admo- 
nished by my appetite of the approach of the hour for indul- 

* President Hopkins's Sermon in commemoration of Amos Lairrence. 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 11 

gence. Thinking the habit might make trouble if allowed 
to grow stronger, without further apology to my seniors I 
declined partaking with them. My first resolution was to 
abstain for a week, and, when the week was out, for a month, 
and then for a yeai\ Finally, I resolved to abstain for the 
rest of my apprenticeship, which was for five years longer. 
During that whole period, I never drank a spoonful, though 
I mixed gallons daily for my old master and his customers. 
I decided not to be a slave to tobacco in any form, though I 
loved the odor of it then, and even now have in my drawer 
a superior Havanna cigar given me, not long since, by a 
friend, but only to smell of I have never in my life smoked 
a cigar, never chewed but one quid, and that was before I was 
fifteen, and never took an ounce of snuff, though the scented 
rappee of forty years ago had great charms for me. Now, I 
say, to this simple fact of starting just right am I indebted, 
with God's blessing on my labors, for my present position, 
as well as that of the numerous connections sprung up 
around me. I have many details that now appear as plain 
to me as the sun at noonday, by which events are connected 
together, and have led to results which call on me to bless 
the Lord for all his benefits, and to use the opportunities 
thus permitted to me in cheering on the generation of young 
men who have claims upon my sympathies as relations, 
fellow-townsmen, or brethren on a more enlarged scale." 

Of this period he writes elsewhere, as follows : — 

" When I look back, I can trace the small events which 
happened at your age as having an influence upon all the 
after-things. My academy lessons, little academy balls, and 
eight-cent expenses for music and gingerbread, the agreeable 
partners in the hall, and pleasant companions in the stroll, all 
helped to make me feel that I had a character even then ; 



12 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

and, after leaving school and going into the store, there was 
not a month passed before I became impressed with the opi- 
nion that restraint upon appetite was necessary to prevent 
the slavery I saw destroying numbers around me. Many 
and many of the farmers, mechanics, and apprentices of that 
day have filled drunkards' graves, and have left destitute 
families and friends. 

" The knowledge of every-day affairs which I acquired in 
my business apprenticeship in Groton has been a source of 
pleasure and profit even in my last ten years' discipline." 

The responsibility thrown upon the young clerk was 
very great ; and he seems cheerfully to have accepted 
it, and to have given himself up entirely to the per- 
formance of his business duties. His time, from early 
dawn till evening, was fully taken up ; and, although 
lining in the family of his employer, and within a mile 
of his father's house, a whole week would sometimes 
pass, without his having leisure to pay even a flying 
visit. 

But few details of his apprenticeship can now be 
gathered from either his contemporaries or from any 
allusions in his own writings. He was disabled for a 
time by an accident which came near being fatal. 
In attempting to unload a gun for some one who 
called at the store, by some means the charge ex- 
ploded, and passed directly through the middle of his 
hand, making a round hole like that of a bullet. 
Sixty-three shot were picked out of the floor after the 
accident, and it seemed almost a miracle that he ever 
again had the use of his hand. 



13 



CHAPTER III. 



ARRIVAL IN BOSTON. — CLERKSHIP. — COMMENCES 
BUSINESS. — HABITS. 



On the 22d of April, 1807, Mr. Lawrence became of 
age ; and his apprenticeship, which had lasted seven 
years, was terminated. 

On the 29th of the same month, he took his father's 
horse and chaise, and engaged a neighbor to drive 
him to Boston, with, as he says many years after- 
wards, — 

" Twenty dollars in my pocket, but feeling richer than I 
had ever felt before, or have felt since. So rich that 
I gave the man who came with me two dollars to save him 
from any expense, and ensure him against loss by his spend- 
ing two days on the journey here and back (for which he 
was glad of an excuse)." 

His object was to make acquaintances, and to 
establish a credit which would enable him to com- 
mence business in Groton on his own account, in 
company with a fellow-clerk, whose apprenticeship 
had not quite expired. 



14 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

A few days after his arrival in Boston, he received 
the oifer of a clerkship from a respectable house ; and, 
wishing to familiarize himself with the modes of trans- 
acting business in the metropolis, and with the desire 
of extending his acquaintance with business men, 
he accepted the offer. His employers Avere so well 
satisfied with the capacity of their new clerk, that, in 
the course of a few months, they made a proposition 
to admit him into partnership. Without any very 
definite knowledge of their affairs, he, much to their 
sui'prise, declined the offer. He did not consider the 
principles on which the business was conducted as 
the true ones. The result showed his sagacity ; for, 
in the course of a few months, the firm failed in busi- 
ness, and he was appointed by the creditors to settle 
their affairs. This he did to their satisfaction ; and, 
having no further occupation, decided upon commenc- 
ing business upon his own account. He accordingly 
hired a small store in what was then called Cornhill, 
and furnished it by means of the credit Avhich he had 
been able to obtain through the confidence with which 
ne had inspired those whose acquaintance he had 
made during his brief sojourn in Boston. 

On the 17th of December, 1807, he commenced 
business, after having engaged as his clerk, Henry 
Whiting, in after years well and honorably known as 
Brigadier-General Whiting of the U. S. Army. 

Mr. Lawrence writes to General Whiting in 1849, 
as follows : — 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 15 

" I have just looked into my first sales-book, and there 
see the entries made by you more than forty-one years ago. 
Ever since, you have been going up from the Cornet of Dra- 
goons to the present station. Abbott, who took your place, 
is now the representative of his country at the Court of St. 
James." 

In a memorandum in one of his account-books, he 
thus alludes to his condition at that time : — 

" I was then, in the matter of property, not worth a dol- 
lar. My father was comfortably off as a farmer, somewhat in 
debt ; worth perhaps four thousand dollars. My brother 
Luther was in the practice of law, getting forward, but not 
worth two thousand dollars ; William worth nothing ; Ab- 
bott, a lad just fifteen years old, at school ; and Samuel, a 
child seven years old." 

Of the manner in which he occupied himself when 
not engaged about his business, he writes to his son 
in 1832: — 

" When I fijst came to this city, I took lodgings in the 
family of a widow who had commenced keeping boarders for 
a living. I was one of her first, and perhaps had been in 
the city two months when I went to this place ; and she of 
course, while I remained, was inclined to adopt any rules 
for the boarders that I prescribed. The only one I ever 
made was, that, after supper, all the boarders who remained 
in the public room should remain quiet at least for one hour, 
to give those who chose to study or read an opportunity of 
doing so without disturbance. The consequence was, that 
we had the most quiet and improving set of young men in 
the town. The few who did not wish to comply with the 



16 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

regulation went abroad after tea, sometimes to the theatre, 
sometimes to other places, but, to a man, became bankrupt 
in after-life, not only in fortune but in reputation ; while a 
majority of the other class sustained good characters, and 
some are now living who are ornaments to society, and fill 
important stations. The influence of this small measure will 
perhaps be felt throughout generations. It was not less 
favorable on myself than on others." 

Mr. Lawrence was remarkable through life for the 
most punctilious exactness in all matters relating to 
business. Ever prompt himself in all that he under- 
took, he submitted Avith little grace to the want of 
the same good trait in others. He writes to a 
friend : — 

"And now having delivered the message, having the 
power at the present moment, and not having the assurance 
that I shall be able to do it the next hour, I will state that I 
practised upon the maxim, 'Business before friends,' from 
the commencement of my course. During the first seven 
years of my business in this city, I never allowed a bill 
against me to stand unsettled over the sabbath. If the pur- 
chase of goods was made at auction on Saturday, and deli- 
vered to me, I always examined and settled the bill by note 
or by crediting it, and having it clear, so that, in case I was 
not on duty on Monday, there would be no trouble for my 
boys ; thus keeping the business before me, instead of allow- 
ing it to drive me." 

Absence from his home seemed only to strengthen 
the feelings of attachment with which he regarded its 
inmates : — 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 17 

" My interest in home, and my desire to have something 
to tell my sisters to instruct and improve them, as well as to 
hear their comments upon whatever I communicated, was a 
powerful motive for me to spend a portion of each evening 
in my boarding-house, the first year I came to Boston, in 
reading and study." 

During the same month in which he commenced 
his business, he opened a correspondence with one of 
his sisters by the following letter : — 

" Boston, December, 1807. 

" Dear E. — Although the youngest, you are no less dear 
to me than the other sisters. To you, therefore, I ought to 
be as liberal in affording pleasure ^if you can find any in 
reading my letters) as to S. and M. ; and, if there is any 
benefit resulting from them, you have a claim to it as well as 
they. From these considerations, and with the hope that 
you wUl write to me whenever you can do so with conve- 
nience, I have begun a correspondence which I hope will 
end only with Ufe. To be able to write a handsome letter is 
certainly a very great accomplishment, and can best be at- 
tained by practice ; and, if you now begin, I have no hesita- 
tion in saying, that, by the time you are sixteen, you will be 
mistress of a handsome style, and thrice the quantity of ideas 
you would otherwise possess, by omitting this paii of educa- 
tion. At present, you can write about any subject that will 
afford you an opportunity of putting together a sentence, and 
I shall read it with pleasure. I mention this, that you need 
not fear writing on subjects not particularly interesting to 
me ; the manner at present being of as much consequence as 
the matter. 

For our mutual pleasure and benefit, dear E., I hope you 
will not fail to gratify your affectionate brother Amos." 
3 



18 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

To show the nature of the correspondence between 
the parties, extracts are given below from a letter 
dated within a few days of the preceding, and ad- 
di-essed to another sister : — 

" From you, my dear sister, the injunction not to forget 
the duties of religion comes with peculiar grace. You beg I 
will pardon you for presuming to offer good advice. Does a 
good act require pardon ? Not having committed an offence, 
I can grant you no pardon ; but my thanks I can give, 
which you will accept, with an injunction never to withhold 
any caution or advice which you may think necessary or 
beneficial on account of fewer years having passed over your 
head 

" Many, when speaking of perfection, say it is not attain- 
able, or hitherto unattainable, and it is therefore vain to try 
or hope for it. To such, I would observe, that, from mo- 
tives of duty to our Creator, and ambition in oiu'selves, we 
ought to strive for it, at least so far as not to be distanced by 
those wjio have preceded us. MoraUty is strict justice 
between man and man ; therefore, a man being moral does 
not imply he is a Christian, but being a Christian implies he 
is a moral man 

" We ought to use our utmost endeavors to conquer our 
passions and evil propensities, to conform our lives to the 
strict rules of morality and the best practice of Christianity. 
I cannot go further, without introducing the subject of 
evil speaking, which you will perhaps think I have ex- 
hausted 

" I do not, my dear M., set myself up as a reformer of 
human nature, or to find fault with it ; but these observa- 
tions (which have occurred to me as I am writing) may serve 
to show how apt we are to do things which afford us no plea- 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 19 

sure, and which oftentimes are attended with the most dis- 
agreeable consequences. If you receive any improvement 
from the sentiments, or pleasure from the perusal, of this let- 
ter, the time in writing will be considered as well spent by 
your affectionate brother Amos." 



'ZO 



CHAPTER IV 



BUSINESS HABITS. — ms FATIIER'S MORTGAGE. — RESOLV 
TIOXS. — AKIUVAL OF BROTHERS IX BOSTON. 



Mr. Lawrfnc e had early formed, in the management 
of his business, certain principles, to Avhich he rigidly 
adhered till the close of life. He writes : — 

" I adopted tlie plan of keeping an accurate account of 
mercliandise bought and sold each day, •with the profit as far 
as practic;ible. This plan was pursued for a number of 
yeais ; and I never found my merchandise fall short in taking 
an account of stock, •which I did as often at least as once in 
each year. I •was thus enabled to fonn an opinion of my 
actual state as a business man. I adopted also tlie rule 
always to have property, after my second year's business, to 
represent forty per cent at least more than I owed ; that is, 
never to be in debt more th;m two and a half times my capital. 
This caution saved me from ever getting emb:u-r;issed. If it 
were more genenilly adopted, we should see fewer flulures 
in business. Excessive credit is tlie rock on which so m;uiy 
business men are broken. 

" When I commenced, the embaigo had just been laid, 
and with such restrictions on trade that miuiy were induced 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 21 

to leave it. But I felt great confidence, that, by industry, 
economy, and integrity, I could get a living ; and the experi- 
ment showed that I was right. IMost of the young men who 
commenced at that period failed by spending too much 
money, and using credit too freely. 

" I made about fifteen hundred dollai-s the first year, and 
more than four thousand the second. Probably, had I made 
four thousand the first year, I should have failed the second 
or third year. I practised a system of rigid economy, and 
never allowed myself to spend a fourpence for unnecessary 
objects until I had acquired it." 

It is known to many of Mr. Lawrence's friends, 
that his father mortgaged his farm, and loaned the 
proceeds to his son ; thereby enabling him, as some 
suppose, to do what he could not have done by his 
own unaided efforts. To show how far this supposi- 
tion is correct, the follomng extract is given. It is 
copied from the back of the original mortgage deed, 
now lying before the wi-iter, and bearing date of 
September 1, 1807. The extract is dated March, 
1847: — 

" The re\new of this transaction always calls up the deep 
feelings of my heart. My honored father brought to me the 
one thousand dollars, and asked me to give liim my note for 
it. I told him he did wrong to place himself In a situation 
to be made unhappy, if I lost the money. He told me he 
guessed I wouldn't lose it, and I gave him my note. The 
first thing I did was to take four per cent premium on my 
Boston bills (the difference then between passable and Bos- 
ton money), and sending a thousand dollars in bills of the 



•SX DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

Hillsborough Bank to Amherst, New Hampshire, by my fa- 
ther, to my brother Luther to cai'ry to the bank and get specie, 
as he was going there to attend court that week. My brother 
succeeded in getting specie, principally in silver change, for 
the bills, and returned it to me in a few days. In the mean- 
time, or shortly after, the bank had been sued, the bills dis- 
credited, and, in the end, proved nearly worthless. I 
determined not to use the money, except in the safest way ; 
and therefore loaned it to Messrs. Parkman, in whom I had 
entire confidence. After I had been in business, and had 
made more than a thousand dollars, I felt that I could repay 
the money, come what would of it ; being insured against fire, 
and trusting nobody for goods. I used it in my business, 
but took care to pay oflF the mortgage as soon as it would be 
received. The whole transaction is deeply interesting, and 
calls forth humble and devout thanksgiving to that merciful 
Father who has been to us better than our most sanguine 
hopes." 

In alluding to this transaction in another place, he 



" This incident shows how dangerous it is to the inde- 
pendence and comfort of families, for parents to take pecu- 
niary responsibilities for their sons in trade, beyond theii" 
power of meeting them without embarrassment. Had my 
Hillsborough Bank notes not been paid as they were, nearly 
the whole amount would have been lost, and myself and family 
might probably have been ruined. The incident was so 
striking, that I have uniformly discouraged young men who 
have appUed to me for credit, offering their fathers as bonds- 
men ; and, by doing so, I have, I believe, saved some respect- 
able families from ruin. My advice, however, has been 
sometimes rejected with anger. A young man who cannot 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 2S 

get along without such aid will not be likely to get along 
with it. On the first day of January, 1808, I had been but 
a few days in business ; and the profits on all my sales to that 
day were $175.18. The expenses were to come out, and 
the balance was my capital. At the end of six years, I had 
made sixty thousand dollars ; at the end of six years more, 
$112,000; at the end of six more, $280,000; and, at the 
end of six more (or in 1832), $427,000. In 1842, the sum 
had increased to such an amount as I thought would be good 
for my descendants ; and, from that time, I have been my 
own executor, and since that time, that is during a period 
of seven years, have expended more than four hundred thou- 
sand dollars. How shall I show my sense of responsibility ? 
Surely by active deeds more than by unmeaning words. 
God grant me to be true and faithful in his work." 

Having become fairly established in Boston, Mr. 
Lawrence concluded to take his brother Abbott, then 
fifteen years of age, as an apprentice. On the 8th of 
October, 1808, Abbott accordingly joined his brother, 
who says of him : — 

" In 1808, he came to me as my apprentice, bringing his 
bundle under his arm, with less than three dollars in his 
pocket (and this was his fortune) ; a first-rate business lad 
he was, but, like other bright lads, needed the careful eye of 
a senior to guard him from the pitfalls that he was ex- 
posed to." 

In his diary of February 10, 1847, he writes: — 

" In the autumn of 1809, I boarded at Granger's Coflfee 
House, opposite Brattle-street Church ; and, in the same 
house, Mr. Charles White took up his quarters, to prepare 



24 DIARY AND CORKESPONDENCE. 

his then new play, called the ' Clergyman's Daughter.' He 
spent some months in preparing it to secure a run for the 
winter ; and used to have Tennett, Canfield, Robert Treat 
Paine, and a host of others, to sup with him very often. I 
not unfrequently left the party at the dinner table, and 
found them there when I returned to tea. Among the 
boarders was a fair proportion of respectable young men, of 
different pursuits ; and, having got somewhat interested for 
White, we all agreed to go, and help bring out his ' Cler- 
gyman's Daughter.' Mrs. Darley was the lady to per- 
sonate her, and a more beautiful creature could not be found. 
She and her husband (who sung his songs better than any 
man I had ever heard then) had all the spirit of parties in 
interest. We filled the boxes, and encored, and all promised 
a great run. After three nights, we found few beside the 
friends, and it was laid aside a failure. In looking back, 
the picture comes fresh before me ; and, among all, I do not 
recollect one who was the better, and most were ruined. 
The theatre is no better now." 

In 1-849, he resumes : — 

" About this time, my brother William made me a Httle 
visit to recruit his health, wliich he had impaired by hard 
"work on the farm, and by a generous attention to the joyous 
meetings of the young folks of both sexes, from six miles 
ai-ound, which meetings he never allowed to break in upon 
his work. He continued his visit through the winter, and 
became so much interested in my business that I agreed to 
famish the store next my own for his benefit. Soon after 
that, I was taken sick ; and he bought goods for himself to 
start with, and pushed on without fear. From that time, he 
was successful as a business man. He used his property 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 25 

faithfully, and I trust acceptably to the Master, who has 
called him to account for his talents. Our father's advice to 
us was, — 

" ' Do not fall out by the way, for a threefold cord is not 
quickly broken.' " 



CHAPTER V. 



VISITS AT GROTON. — SICKNESS. — LETTER FROM DR. SHAT- 
TUCK. — ENGAGEMENT. — LETTER TO REV. DR. GANNETT. 
— MARRIAGE. 



During these years, Mr. Lawrence was in the habit 
of making occasional \'isits to his parents in Groton, 
thirty-five miles distant. His custom was to drive 
himself, leaving Boston after business hours on Satur- 
day afternoon, and often, as he says, encroaching upon 
the sabbath before reaching home. After midnight, 
on Sunday, he would leave on his return ; and thus 
was enabled to reach Boston about daybreak on 
Monday morning, without losing a moment's time in 
his business. 

, In 1810, Mr. Lawrence was seized with an alarm- 
ing illness, through which he enjoyed the care and 
skill of his friend and physician, the late Dr. G. C. 
Shattuck, who, shortly before his own death, trans- 
mitted the following account of this illness to the edi- 
tor of these pagfes, who also had the rare privilege 
of enjojing a friendship so much prized by his 
father : — 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 27 

"Feb. 28, 1853. 
"More than forty years ago. New England was visited 
with a pestilence. The people were stricken with panic. 
The first victims were taken off unawares. In many 
towns in the interior of the Commonwealth, the people 
assembled in town meeting, and voted to pay, from the 
town treasury, physicians to be in readiness to attend on 
any one assailed with the premonitory symptoms of disease. 
The distemjier was variously named, cold plague, spotted 
fever, and malignant remittent fever. After a day of un- 
usual exercise, your father was suddenly taken ill. The 
worthy family in which he boarded were prompt in their 
sympathy. A physician was called : neighbors and friends 
volunteered their aid. Remedies were diligently employed. 
Prayers in the church were offered up for the sick one. A 
pious father left his home, on the banks of the Nashua, to 
be with his son. To the physician in attendance, he gave a 
convulsive grasp of the hand, and, with eyes brimful of 
tears, and choked utterance, articulated, ' Doctor, if Amos 
has not money enough, I have ! ' To the anxious father, his 
acres seemed like dust in the balance contrasted with the life 
of his son. He was a sensible man, acting on the principle 
that the stimulus of reward is a salutary adjunct to the 
promptings of humanity. God rebuked the disorder, though 
the convalescence was slow. A constitution with an origi- 
nally susceptible nervous temperament had received a shock 
which rendered him a long time feeble. An apprentice, 
with a discretion beyond his years, maintained a healthy acti- 
vity in his mercantile operations, to the quiet of his mind. 
He did not need great strength; for sagacity and decision 
supplied every other lack. Supply and demand were as 
famiHar to him as the alphabet. He knew the wants of the 
country, and sources of supply. Accumulation followed his 
operations, and religious principle regulated the distribution 



S50 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

of the cumbrous surplus. A sensible and pious father, aided 
by a prudent mother, had trained the child to become the 
future man. You will excuse my now addressing you, when 
you recur to the tradition that I had pai'ticipated in the joy 
of the house when you first opened your eyes to the light. 
That God's promises to the seed of the righteous may extend 
to you and yours is the prayer of your early acquaintance, 

"George C. Shattuck." 

But few details of Mr. Lawrence's business from 
this date until 1815 are now found. Suffice it to say, 
that, through the difficult and troubled times in which 
the United States were engaged in the war with Eng- 
land, his efforts were crowned with success. Dark 
clouds sometimes arose in the horizon, and various 
causes of discouragement from time to time cast a 
gloom over the mercantile world; but despondency 
formed no part of his character, while cool sagacity 
and unceasing watchfulness and perseverance enabled 
him to weather many a storm which made shipwreck 
of others around him. 

Amidst the engrossing cares of business, however, 
Mr. Lawrence found time to indulge in more genial 
pursuits, as will be seen from the following lines, 
addressed to his sister : — 

"Boston, March 17, 1811. 
" My ' not having written to you since youi- return, my 
dear M., has proceeded fiom my having other numerous 
avocations, and partly from a carelessness in such affairs 
reprehensible in me. You will perhaps be surprised to learn 
the extent and importance of my avocations ; for, in addition 
to my usual routine of mercantile affairs, I have lately been 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 29 

engaged in a negotiation of the first importance, and which I 
have accomplished very much to my own satisfaction. It is 
no other than having offered myself as a husband to your 
very good friend Sarali Richards, which offer she has agreed 
to accept. So, next fall, you must set your mind on a wed- 
ding. Sarah I have long known and esteemed: there is 
such a reciprocity of feelings, sentiments, and principles, 
that I have long thought her the most suitable person I had 
seen for me to be united with. Much of my time, as you 
may well suppose, is spent in her society ; and here I cannot 
but observe the infinite advantage of good sense and good 
principles over the merely elegant accomplishments of fash- 
ionable education. By the latter, we may be fascinated for 
a time ; but they will afford no satisfaction on retrospection. 
The former you are compelled to respect and to love. Such 
qualities are possessed by Sarah ; and, were I to say any thing 
further in her favor, it would be that she is beloved by you. 
Adieu, my dear sister, A. L." 

As this volume is intended only for the perusal of 
the family and friends of the late Amos Lawrence, no 
apology need be made for introducing such incidents 
of his life, of a domestic nature, as may be thought 
interestmg, and which it might not seem advisable to 
introduce under other circumstances. Of this nature 
are some details connected with this engagement. 
The young lady here alluded to, whose solid qualities 
he thus, at the age of twenty-five and in the first 
flush of a successful courtship, so calmly discusses, in 
addition to these, possessed personal charms sufficient 
to captivate the fancy of even a more philosophical 
admirer than himself Her father, Giles Richards, 



30 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

was a man of great ingenuity, who resided in Boston 
at the close of the Revolutionary War. He owned 
an establishment for the manufactory of cards for 
preparing wool. A large number of men were em- 
ployed ; and, at that time, it was considered one of 
the objects worthy of notice by strangers. As such, 
it was visited by Gen. Washington on his northern 
tour ; and may be found described, in the early edi- 
tions of Morse's Geography, among the industrial 
establishments of Boston. As in the case of many 
more noted men of inventive genius, his plans were 
more vast than the means of accomplishment ; and 
the result was loss of a handsome competency, and 
embarrassment in business, from which he retired 
with unsullied reputation, and passed his latter years 
in the vicinity of Boston. Here the evening of his 
life was cheered by the constant and watchful care of 
his wife, whose cheerful and happy temperament shed 
a radiance around his path, which, from a naturally 
desponding character, might othei-wise have terminated 
in gloom. She ha'd been the constant companion of 
her husband in all his journejdngs and residences in 
nearly every State in the Union, where his business 
had called him ; and, after forty years, returned to die 
in the house where she was bom, — the parsonage 
once occupied by her father, the Rev. Amos Adams, 
of Roxbury, who, at the time of the Revolution, was 
minister of the church now under the pastoral care 
of the Rev. Dr. Putnam. 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 31 

Sarah had been placed in the family of the Rev. 
Dr. Chaplin, minister of the church at Groton, and 
was a member of the academy when Mr. Lawrence 
first made her acquaintance. " The academy balls, 
the agreeable partners in the hall, the pleasant com- 
panions in the stroll," remembered with so much 
pleasure in after-life, were not improbably associated 
with this acquaintance, who had become a visitor and 
friend to his own sisters. After a separation of four 
years, the acquaintance was accidentally renewed in 
the year 1807. Sarah was on a visit at Cambridge 
to the family of Caleb Gannett, Esq., then and for 
many years afterwards Steward of Harvard University. 
In a letter to Rev. Dr. Gannett, dated Feb. 15, 1845, 
Mr. Lawrence thus alludes to this interview : — 

" My first interview with you, thirty-eight years ago, 
when you were led by the hand into the store where I then 
was, in Cornhill, by that friend (who was afterwards my 
wife), unconscious of my being within thirty miles, after a 
four years' separation, connects you in my thoughts with 
her, her children and grandchildren, in a way that no one 
can appreciate who has not had the experience." 

Enclosed in this letter was a faded paper, on which 
were written several verses of poetry, with the fol- 
lowing explanation : — 

" Only think of your sainted mother writing this Mttle 
scrap thirty-eight years ago, when on her deathbed, for her 
young friend, then on a visit to her, to teach to you, who 
could not read ; and this scrap, written upon a blank term- 



32 DIAKY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

bill without premeditation, being preserved by that friend 
while she lived, and, after her death, by her daughter while 
she lived, and, after her death, being restored to me as the 
rightful disposer of it ; and my happening, within four days 
after, to meet you under such circumstances as made it 
proper to show it to you." 

MRS. GANNETTS HYMN FOR HER LITTLE BOY IN 1807. 

How can a child forgetful prove 

Of all that wakes the heart to love, 

And from the path of duty stray, 

To spend his time in sport and play ; 

Neglectful of the blessing given, 

Which marks the path to peace and heaven 1 

Oh ! how can I, who daily share 

A mother's kind, assiduous care. 

Be idle, and ungrateful too ; 

Forsake the good, the bad pursue ; 

Neglectful of the blessings given, 

Which mark the path to peace and heaven 1 

Oh ! how can I such folly show. 
When faults indulged to vices grow, — 
' Who know that idle days ne'er make 
Men that are useful, good, or great ? 
Dear mother, still be thou my guide. 
Nor suffer me my faults to hide ; 
And oh may God his grace impart 
To fix my feeble, foolish heart. 
That I may wait the blessing given, 
Which marks the path to peace and heaven ! 

Mem. — Mrs. Gannett died soon after writing this on a blank term-bill 
of Harvard CoUege, in 1807. A. L., 1847. 

The marriage of Mr. Lawrence took place in Boston 
during the month of Jime, 1811, three months after 
announcing to his sister his engagement. 



33 



CHAPTEE VI. 



BRAMBLE NEWS. — DOMESTIC HABITS. — ILLNESS OF WIFE. 



In 1849, Mr. Lawrence writes as follows : — 

" On the 1st of Januaiy, 1814, I took my brother Abbott 
into partnership on equal shares, putting fifty thousand 
dollars that I had then earned into the concern. Thi-ee 
days afterwards, the ' Bramble News ' came, by which the 
excessive high price of goods was knocked down. Our 
stock was then large, and had cost a high price. He was in 
great anguish, considering himself a bankrupt for at least 
five thousand dollars. I cheered him by offering to cancel 
our copartnership indentures, give him up his note, and, at 
the end of the year, pay him five thousand dollars. He 
declined the ofiier, saying I should lose that, and more 
beside, and, as he had enlisted, would do the best he could. 
This was in character, and it was well for us both. He was 
called off to do duty as a soldier, through most of the year. 
I took care of the business, and prepared to retreat with my 
family into the country whenever the town seemed liable to 
fall into the hands of the British, who were very threatening 
in their demonstrations. We still continue mercantile busi- 
ness under the first set of indentures, and under the same 
firm, merely adding '& Co.,' as new partners have been 

admitted." 

5 



34 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

In March, 1815, the junior partner was despatched 
to England upon the business of the firm ; this being 
the first of several voyages subsequently taken for the 
same purpose. To his wife at Groton, Mr. Lawrence 
writes, under date of June 4, 1815 : — 

" The ' Milo ' got in yesterday, and brought letters from 
Abbott, dated 4th April. He was then in Manchester, and 
enjoyed the best health. He wi'ote to our father, which 
letter, I hope, will arrive at Groton by to-morrow's mail. 
I received from him merchandise, which I hope to get out 
of the ship and sell this week. I suspect there are few 
instances of a young man leaving this town, sending out 
goods, and having them sold within ninety days from the 
time of his departure. It is eighty-four days this morning 
since he left home." 

In searching for records of the business at that 
period, the first copied letters are found in a volume 
commencing with the date of March 10, 1815 ; since 
which period, the correspondence, contained in many 
volumes, is complete. On the first page of this 
volume is a letter from the senior partner somewhat 
characteristic. It relates to a bUl of exchange for 
two thousand rupees, which he knew was a doubtful 
one, but which he had taken to relieve the pressing ne- 
cessities of a young Englishwoman from Calcutta, with 
a worthless husband. He writes to his friends : — 

" "We have been so particular as to send a clerk to her 
with the money, that we might be sure of her receiving it. 
Previous to her receiving the money from us, we were told 



DIARY AND COEEESPONDENCE. 35 

her children were ragged, bai'efooted, and hungry ; after- 
wai-ds we knew they were kept completely clad." 

In tracing the course of business as revealed by 
the perusal of the correspondence, it is evident that 
Mr. Lawrence's time and attention must have been 
engrossed by the increasing importance and the mag- 
nitude of the mercantile operations of his firm. The 
cares and perplexities of business did not, however, 
unfit him for the quiet enjoyments of domestic life ; 
and, however great and urgent were the calls upon 
his time and his thoughts from abroad, home, with 
its endearments, occupied the first place in his afiec- 
tions. So much did its interests transcend all others 
in his feelings, that he speaks in after-life of having 
" watched night and day vdthout leaving, for a fort- 
night," a sick child ; and then being rewarded for his 
care by having it restored to him after the diligent 
applications of remedies, when the physician and 
friends had given up all hope of recovery. 

With such affections and sources of happiness, 
connected with prosperity in business, it may well be 
supposed that the current of life flowed smoothly 
on. His evenings were passed at home ; and urgent 
must have been the call which could draw him from 
his fireside, where the social chat or friendly book 
banished the cares of the day. 

A gentleman, now a prominent merchant in New 
York, who was a clerk with Mr. Lawrence at this 
time, says of him : — 



do DIARY AND COKKESPONDENCE. 

" When the business season was over, he would sit down 
with me, and converse freely and familiarly, and would have 
something interesting and useful to say. I used to enjoy 
these sittings ; and, while I always feared to do any thing, 
or leave any thing undone, which would displease him, I at 
the same time had a very high regard, and I may say love, 
for him, such as I never felt for any other man beside my own 
father. He had a remarkable faculty of bringing the sterling 
money into our currency, with any advance, by a calculation 
in his mind, and would give the result with great accuracy 
in one quarter the time which it took me to do it by figures. 
I used to try hard to acquire this faculty, but could not, and 
never saw any other person who possessed it to the degree 
he did. His mind was remarkably vigorous and accurate ; 
and consequently his business was transacted in a prompt 
and correct manner. Nothing was left undone until to- 
morrow which could be done to-day. He was master of 
and controlled his business, instead of allowing his business 
to master and control liim. When I took charge of the 
books, they were kept by single entry ; and Mr. Lawrence 
daily examined every entry to detect errors. He was dis- 
satisfied with this loose way of keeping the books ; and, at 
his request, I studied book-keeping by double entry with 
Mr. Gershom Cobb, who had just introduced the new and 
shorter method of double entry. I then transferred the 
accounts into a new set of books on this plan, and well 
remember his anxiety during the process, and his expression 
of delight when the work was completed, and I had suc- 
ceeded in making the first trial-balance come out right. 
This was the first set of books opened in Boston on the new 
system. While Mr. Lawrence required all to fulfil their 
engagements fully and promptly, so long as they were able 
to do so, he was lenient to those who were unfortunate, and 
always ready to compromise demands against such. No 



DIARY AND COERESPONDENCE. 37 

case occurred while I was with him, in which I thought he 
deah harshly with a debtor who had failed in business." 

The year 1818 openqji with cheering prospects ; 
but a cloud was gathering which was destined to cast 
a shadow over all these pleasant hopes. During the 
spring, Mrs. Lawrence was troubled with a cold and 
cough, which became so obstinate at the beginning of 
the summer, that she was persuaded to remain at 
Groton for a short period, in order to try the benefit of 
country air. Mr. Lawrence writes to her, July 16 : — 

" I am forcibly reminded of the blessings of wife, chil- 
dren, and friends, by the privation of wife and children ; 
and, when at home, I really feel homesick and lonesome. 
Here I am, in two great rooms, almost alone ; so you must 
prepare at a minute's notice to follow your husband." 

She remained in the country for several weeks, 
and was summoned suddenly home by the alarming 
illness of her husband ; the result of which, for a 
time, seemed very doubtful. After a season of intense 
anxiety and unremitted watchings at his bedside, Mrs. 
Lawrence was seized during the night with a hemor- 
rhage from the lungs. This symptom, which so 
much alarmed her friends, was hailed by herself with 
joy, as she now had no wish to outlive her husband, 
whose life she had despaired of. Mr. Lawrence's 
recovery was slow; and, as soon as it was deemed 
prudent, he was sent to Groton to recruit his strength. 
He writes, under date of Nov. 5, 1818 : — 



38 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

" Dearest Sarah, — We have heard of the fire on Tues- 
day evening, and hope the alarm has not impaired your 
health. I enjoy myself here as much as it is possible for 
any one to do under like circumstances. The idea of leaving 
the objects most dear to me, a wife and child sick, is too 
great a drawback upon my happiness to allow me as much 
quiet as is desirable. Yet I have great reason for thankful- 
ness that I am at this time able to enjoy the society of 
friends, and that you are so comfortable as to give good 
reason to hope that the next season will restore to you a 
tolerable share of health." 

Mrs. Lawrence writes, in reply to his letter : — 

" I have just received yours, and feel better to hear that 
you are so well. I hope that you will leave no means 
unimproved to regain health. Do not allow unreasonable 
fears on my account. I am as well as I was the week past ; 
but we are uneasy mortals, and I do not improve as I could 
wish. You know me : therefore make all allowances. It 
is a cloudy day." 

It soon became evident to all, that the disease under 
which Mrs. Lawrence labored was a settled consump- 
tion, and that there could be little hope of recovery. 
To her mother Mr. Lawrence writes, Dec. 7 : — 

" Since I last wrote to you, there has been no material 
change in Sarah's situation. She suffers less pain, and has 
more cheerful spirits, than when you were here. She is very 
well apprised of her situation, and complains that those who 
are admitted to see her look so sorrowful, that it has a 
painful effect upon her feelings. She is desirous of being 
kept cheerful and happy ; and, as far as I am capable of 



DIAKY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 39 

making her so, I do it. Yet I am a poor hand to attempt 
doing with my feeble health what is so foreign to my 
feelings. Although she is much more comfortable than she 
was, I cannot flatter myself that she is any better. She still 
retains a faint hope that she may be so ; yet it is but a faint 
one. It takes much from my distress to see her so calm, 
and so resigned to the will of the Almighty. Although her 
attachments to Kfe are as strong and as numerous as are the 
attachments of most, I believe the principle of resignation is 
stronger. She is a genuine disciple of Christ ; and, if my 
childi-en walk in her steps, they will all be gathered among 
the blest, and sing the song of the redeemed. Should it be 
the will of God that we be separated for a season, there is an 
animation in the hope that we shall meet again, purified 
from the grossness of the flesh, and never to be parted. 
' God tempers the wind to the shorn lamb.' I shall have, 
therefore, no more put upon me than I am able to bear ; yet 
I know not how to bring my mind to part with so excellent 
a friend, and so good a counsellor." 

On Jan. 13, 1819, he writes : — 

" Sarah has continued to sink since you left, and is now 
apparently veiy easy, and very near the termination of her 
earthly career. She may continue two or three days ; but 
the prospect is, that she will not open her eyes upon another 
morning. She suffers nothing, and it is therefore no trial to 
our feelings, compared with what it would be did she suffer. 
Her mind is a little clouded at times, but, in the maiu, quite 
clear. We shall give you early information of the event 
which blasts our dearest earthly hopes. But God reigns : 
let us rejoice." 

A few hours before her death, she called for a pen- 



40 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

cil and paper (uow in possession of the writer), and 
traced, in a trembling hand, some directions respecting 
small memorials to friends, and then added : — 

" Feeling that I must soon depart from this, I trust, to a 
better world, I resign very dear friends to God, who has 
done so much for me. I am in ecstacies of love. How can 
I praise him enough ? To my friends I give these tokens of 
remembrance." 



41 



CHAPTEE YII. 



DEATH OF WIFE. — JOUENEYS. — LETTERS. — JOUEKEY TO 
NEW YORK. 



On the lith of January, 1819, Mr. Lawrence closed 
the eyes of the most beloved of all his earthly objects, 
and immediately relapsed into a state of melancholy 
and gloom, which was no doubt greatly promoted by 
the peculiar state of health and physical debUity 
under which he had labored since his last illness. 
This state of depression was so great, that he was 
advised to try a change of scene; and accordingly, 
after ha%ing placed his three children with kind rela- 
tives in the country, he left Boston, on a tour, which 
lasted some weeks, through the Middle States and 
Virginia. He wrote many letters during this time, 
describing the scenes which he daUy witnessed, and 
particularly the pleasure which he experienced in 
Virginia from the unbounded hospitality with which 
he was welcomed by those with whom he had 
become acquainted. He also visited Washington, 
and listened to some important debates on the admis- 
sion of Missouri into the Union, which produced a 



42 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

strong and lasting influence upon his mind respect- 
ing the great questions then discussed. 

On March 30, he writes to his sister, after his 
return to Boston : — 

" I am once more neai" the remains of her who was lately 
more dear to me than any other earthly object, after an 
absence of two months ; my health much improved, — I may 
say restored ; my heart filled with gratitude to the Author of 
all good for so many and rich blessings, so rapidly succeed- 
ing such severe privations and trials." 

On April 6, he writes to a friend in England : — 

" Since I last wrote, family misfortunes, of which you 
have fi-om time to time been apprised, have pressed heavily 
upon me. I am now in tolerable health, and hope soon to 
see it entirely confirmed." 

After a visit to his parents at Groton, he writes on 
April 9; — 

" I arrived at home last Saturday night, at eleven o'clock, 
after rather an uncomfortable ride. However, I had the 
satisfaction on Monday of exercising my right of suffrage, 
which, had I not done, I should have felt unpleasantly. I 
wrote to M., on Tuesday, under a depression of spirits alto- 
gether greater than I have before felt. The effect of hope 
upon my feelings, before I saw the little ones, was very ani- 
mating ; since (although I found them all I could desii-e) that 
time, the stimulus is gone, and I have been very wretched. 
The principles I cherish will now have their proper effect, 
although nature must first find its level. Do not imagine I 
feel severely depressed all the time : although I certainly 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 43 

have much less of animal spuits than I had before my return, 
I do not feel positively unhappy. Under all the circum- 
stances, it is thought best for me to journey. Hitherto, I 
have experienced the kind protection of an almighty Friend : 
it will not hereafter be withheld. Commending all dear 
friends and myself to him, I remain your truly affectionate 
brother, A. L." 

To another sister, he writes five days afterwards, 
before commencing a second journey : — 

" In a few moments I am off. I gladly seize the leisure 
they furnish me, to tell you I feel well, and have no doubt 
of having such a flow of spirits as will make my journey 
pleasant. At any rate, I start with this determination. 
You know not, dear E., the delight I feel in contemplating 
the situation of my little ones : this (if no higher principle) 
should be sufficient to do away all repining and vain regrets 
for the loss of an object so dear as was their mother. In 
short, her own wishes should operate very strongly against 
these regrets. I hope to be forgiven the offence, if such it 
be ; and to make such improvement of it as will subserve 
the purposes of my heavenly Father, who doth not willingly 
afflict the children of men, but for their improvement. My 
prayer to God is, that the affliction may not be lost upon me ; 
but that it may have the effect of making me estimate more 
justly the value of all temporal objects, and, by thus soften- 
ing the heart, open it to the kind influences of our holy reli- 
gion, and produce that love and charity well pleasing to our 
Father. I have no object in view farther south than Balti- 
more ; from thence I shall go across the Alleghanies, or 
journey through the interior to the northern border of this 
country. At Baltimore, I remain a few days ; my business 
there is as delegate from Brattle-street Church, in the settle- 



44 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

ment of a minister, a young gentleman named Sparks, from 
Connecticut." 

From Lancastex", Penn, April 29, he writes to the 
same : — 

" My feelings are usually buoyant, except occasionally 
when imagination wanders back to departed days ; then 
comes over me a shadow, which, by its frequency, I am now 
enabled to dispel without violence, and even to dwell upon 
without injury." 

On his return, it seems to have heen his object to 
interest himself as much as possible in business, and 
thus endeavor to divert his mind from these painful 
associations, which, in spite of all his efforts, would 
obtain the mastery. In the meantime, he had given 
up his house, and resided in the family of his brother 
Abbott ; where he was welcomed as an inmate, and 
treated with so much sympathy and considerate kind- 
ness, that his mind, after a time, recovered its tone : 
his health was restored, and he was enabled to give 
his full powers to the growing interests of his firm. 
For the few succeeding years, he was engaged in the 
usual routine of mercantile affairs, and has left but 
few memorials or letters except those relating to his 
business. In the winter of 1820, he made a visit to 
New York, which he describes in his diary under date 
of February 15, 1846: — 

" Yesterday was one of the most lovely winter days. To- 
day the snow drives into all the cracks and corners, it being 



DIAKY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 45 

a boisterous easterly snow-storm, which recalls to my mind a 
similar one, which I shall never forget, in February, 1820. 

" I went to New York during that month, for the New 
England Bank, with about one hundred thousand dollars in 
foreign gold, the value of which by law at the mint was soon 
to be reduced from eighty-seven to eighty-five cents per 
pennyweight, or about that. I also had orders to buy bills 
with it, at the best rate I could. Accordingly I invested it, 
and had to analyze the standing of many who ofiered bills, as 
drawers or endorsers. 

" Some of the bills were protested for non-acceptance, and 
were returned at once, and damages claimed. This was new 
law in New York, and resisted ; but the merchants were 
convinced by suits, and paid the twenty per cent damages. 
The law of damage was altered soon after. 

" On my return, I took a packet for Providence, and came 
at the rate of ten knots an hour for the first seven hours of 
the night. I was alarmed by a crash, which seemed to me 
to be breaking in the side of the ship, within a few inches of 
my head. I ran upon deck, and it was a scene to be remem- 
bered. Beside the crew, on board were the officers of a 
wrecked vessel from Portsmouth, N.H., and some other old 
ship-masters, aU. at work, and giving directions to a coaster, 
which had run foul of us, and had lost its way. By favor 
and labor, we were saved from being wrecked; but were 
obliged to land at some fifteen miles from Providence, and 
get there as we could through the snow. I arrived there 
almost dead with headache and sickness. Madame Dexter 
and her daughter left the day before, and reached home in 
perfect safety before the storm. Such are the scenes of 
human life ! Here am I enjojring my own fireside, while all 
who were then active with me in the scenes thus recalled 
are called to their account, excepting Philip Hone, M. Van 
Schaick, N. Goddard, Chancellor Kent, and his son-in-law, 
Isaac Hone." 



46 



CHAPTER VIII. 



MARRIAGE. — ELECTED TO LEGISLATURE. — ENGAGES IN 
MANUFACTURING. — REPLECTIONS. 



In April, 1821, Mr. Lawrence was married to Mrs. 
Nancy Ellis, widow of the late Judge Ellis, of Clare- 
mont, N.H., and daughter of Robert Means, Esq., of 
Amherst, in the same State. His children, who had 
been placed with his parents and sisters at Groton, 
were brought home ; and he was now permitted again 
to unite his family under his own roof, and to enjoy 
once more those domestic comforts so congenial to 
his taste, and which each revolving year seemed to 
increase until the close of his life. 

Mr. Lawrence was elected a representative from 
Boston to the Legislature for the session of 1821 and 
22 ; and this was the only occasion on which he ever 
served in a public legislative body. Although deeply 
engaged in his own commercial pursuits, he was a 
constant attendant at the House of Representatives ; 
and attended faithfully, although with much sacrifice 
to his own personal interests, to the duties of his ofiice. 
Very little is found among his memoranda relating to 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 47 

this new experience. As a member of a Committee 
of the Legislature having in charge the subject of the 
erection of wooden buildings in Boston, he seems to 
have had a correspondence with the late Hon. John 
Lowell, who took strong ground before the Committee 
against the multiplication of buildings of this mate- 
rial, and backed his argmnents with some very cha- 
racteristic statements and observations. On one of 
these letters, Mr. Lawrence made a memorandum, 
dated March, 1845, as follows : — 

" The Boston Rebel was a true man, such as we need 
more of in these latter days. The open-mouthed lovers of 
the dear people are self-seekers in most instances. Beware 
of such." 

For several successive years, Mr. Lawrence was 
deeply engaged in business ; and the firm of which 
he was the senior partner became interested in do- 
mestic manufactures, which afterwards, with the aid 
of other capitalists, grew into so much importance, 
untU now it has become one of the great interests of 
the country. Apart from all selfish motives, he early 
became one of the strongest advocates for the protec- 
tion of American industry, believing that the first 
duty of a government is to advance the interests of its 
own citizens, when it can be accomplished with jus- 
tice to others ; and in opposition to the system of free 
trade, which, however plausible in theory, he consi- 
dered prejudicial to the true interests of our own 



48 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

people. He was conscientious in these opinions ; 
and, in their support, corresponded largely with some 
of the leading statesmen at "Washington, as well as 
with leading opponents at the South, who combatted 
his opinions while they respected the motives by 
which he was actuated. He tested his sincerity, by 
embarking a large proportion of his property in these 
enterprises; and, to the last, entertained the belief, 
that the climate, the soil, and the habits of the people, 
rendered domestic manufactures one of the peimanent 
and abiding interests of New England. During sea- 
sons of high political excitement and sectional strife, 
he wrote to leading minds at the South, urging them 
to discard all local prejudices, and to enter with the 
North into manly competition in all those branches 
of domestic industry which would tend, not only to 
enrich, but also to improve, the moral and intellectual 
character of then- people. He watched, with increas- 
ing interest, the progress of Lowell and other manu- 
facturing districts, and was ever ready to lend a 
helping hand to any scheme which tended to advance 
their welfare. Churches, hospitals, libraries, in these 
growing communities, had in him a warm and earnest 
advocate ; and it was always with honest pride that 
he pointed out to the intelligent foreigner the moral 
condition of the operative here, when compared with 
that of the same class in other countries. 

On the 1st of January, in each year, Mr. Lawrence 
was in the habit of noting down, in a small memo- 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 49 

randum-book, an accurate account of all his property, 
in order that he might have a clear view of his own 
aflFairs, and also as a guide to his executors in the set- 
tlement of his estate, in case of his death. This 
annual statement commences in 1814, and, with the 
exception of 1819, when he was in great affliction on 
account of the death of his wife, is continued every 
year until that of his own death in 1852. In this lit- 
tle volume, the following memorandum occurs, dated 
Jan. 1, 1826 : — 

" I have been extensively engaged in business during the 
last two years, and have added much to my worldly posses- 
sions ; but have come to the same conclusions in regai'd to 
them that I did in 1818. I feel distressed in mind that the 
resolutions then made have not been more effectual in keep- 
ing me from this overengagedness in business. I now find 
myself so engrossed with its cares, as to occupy my thoughts, 
waking or sleeping, to a degree entirely disproportloned to 
its importance. The quiet and comfort of home are broken 
in upon by the anxiety arising from the losses and mischances 
of a business so extensive as ours ; and, above all, that com- 
munion which ought ever to be kept free between man and 
his ~ Maker is interrupted by the incessant calls of the multi- 
farious pursuits of our estabhshment." 

After noting down several rules for curtailing his 
affairs, he says : — 

"Property acquired at such sacrifices as I have been 
obliged to make the past year costs more than it's worth ; 
and the anxiety in protecting it is the extreme of folly." 
7 



50 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCB. 

1st of January, 1827. — "The principles of business laid 
down a year ago have been very nearly practised upon. Our 
responsibiUties and anxieties have greatly diminished, as also 
have the accustomed profits of business ; but there is suiS- 
cient remaining for the reward of our labor to impose on 
us increased responsibilities and duties, as agents who must 
at last render an account. God grant that mine be found 
correct ! " 



51 



CHAPTER IX. 



REFLECTIONS. — LETTERS. — BUNKER HILL MONUMENT. 



1st of January, 1828. — After an account of his 
affairs, he remarks : — 

" The amount of property is great for a young man under 
forty-two years of age, who came to this town when he was 
twenty-one years old with no other possessions than a com- 
mon country education, a sincere love for his own family, 
and habits of industry, economy, and sobriety. Under God, 
it is to these same self-denying habits, and a desire I always 
had to please, so far as I could without sinful compliance, 
that I can now look back upon and see as the true ground of 
my success. I have many things to reproach myself with ; 
but, among them, are not idling away my time, or spending 
money for such things as ai'e improper. My property im- 
poses upon me many duties, which can only be known to 
my Maker. May a sense of these duties be constantly 
impressed upon my mind ; and, by a constant discharge of 
them, God grant me the happiness at last of hearing the joy- 
ful sound, ' Well done, good and faithful servant, enter thou 
into the joy of thy Lord ! ' Amen. Amen." 



52 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

Previous to this date, but few private letters written 
by Mr. Lawrence were preserved. From that time, 
however, many volumes have been collected, a greater 
part of them addressed to his children. Out of a 
very large correspondence with them and with friends, 
such letters will be selected as are thought most 
interesting, and most worthy to be preseiTed by his 
family and their descendants. The nature of this 
correspondence is such, involving many personal mat- 
ters of transient interest, that often scraps of letters 
can only be given ; and, although it wUl be the aim 
of the editor to give an outline of the life of the 
author of these letters, it will be his object to allow 
him to speak for himself, and to reveal his own 
sentiments and character, rather than to follow out, 
from year to year, the details of his personal history. 
This correspondence commences by a series of letters 
extending through several years, and addressed to his 
oldest son, who was, during that time, at school in 
France and Spain. 

" Boston, Not. 11, 1828. 
'" I trust that you will have had favoring gales and a 
pleasant passage, and will be safely landed at Havre within 
twenty days after sailing. You will see things so different 
from what you have been accustomed to, that you may think 
the French are far before or behind us in the arts of life, 
, and formation of society. But you must remember that 
what is best for one people may be the worst for another ; 
and that it is true wisdom to study the character of the 
people among whom you aie, before adopting their manners. 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 53 

habits, or feelings, and carrying them to another people. I 
wish to see you, as long as you live, a -well-bred, upright 
Yankee. Brother Jonathan should never forget his self- 
respect, nor should he be impertinent in claiming more for 
his country or himself than is due ; but on no account should 
he speak ungraciously of his country or its friends abroad, 
■whatever may be said by others. Lafayette in France is 
not what he is here ; and, whatever may be said of him 
there, he is an ardent friend of the United States ; and I 
will venture to say, if you introduce yourself to him as a 
grandson of one of his old Yankee officers, he will treat you 
with the kindness of a father. You must visit La Grange, 
and G. will go with you. He will not recollect your grand- 
father, or any of us. But tell him that your father and three 
uncles were introduced to him here in the State House ; 
that they are much engaged in forwarding the Bunker Hill 
Monument ; and, if ever he return to this country, it will 
be the pride of your father to lead him to the top of it." 

Among Mr. Lawrence's papers, this is the first 
allusion to the Bunker Hill Monument, in the erec- 
tion of which he afterwards took so prominent a 
part, and to which he most liberally contributed both 
time and money. From early associations, perhaps 
from the accounts received from his father, who was 
present during the battle, his mind became strongly 
interested in the project of erecting a monument, and 
particularly in that of reserving the whole battle- 
ground for the use of the public for ever. He had 
been chosen one of the Building Committee of the 
Board of Directors in October, 1825, in company with 
Dr. John C. Warren, Gen. H. A. S. Dearborn, George 



54 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

Blake, and William Sullivan, From this time until 
the completion of the monument, the object occupied 
a prominent place in his thoughts ; and allusion to 
his efforts in its behalf during the succeeding years 
will, from time to time, be introduced. 

On Dec. 13, 1828, he thus alludes to the death of 
an invalid daughter six years of age : — 

" She was taken with lung-fever on the 4th, and died, 
after much suffering and distress, on the 8th. Nothing 
seemed to relieve her at all ; and I was thankful when the 
dear child ceased to suffer, and was taken to the bosom of 
her Saviour, where sickness and suffering will no more 
reach her, and the imperfections of her eartlily tenement 
will be corrected, and her mind and spirit will be allowed 
to expand and grow to their full stature in Christ. In his 
hands I most joyfully leave her, hoping that I may rejoin 
her with the other children which it has pleased God to 
give me." 

To HIS Son. 

" Dec. 29. 

" My thoughts are often led to contemplate the situation 

of my children in every variety of situation, more especially 

in sickness, since the death of dear M. Although I do not 

allow myself to indulge in melancholy or fearful forebodings, 

I cannot but feel the deepest solicitude that their minds and 

principles should be so strengthened and stayed upon their 

God and Saviour as to give them all needed support in a 

time of such trial and suffering. You are so situated as 

perhaps not to recall so frequently to your miiid as may be 

necessary the principles in which you have been educated. 

But let me, in the absence of these objects, remind you that 

God is ever present, and sees the inmost thoughts ; and. 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 55 

while he allows eveiy one to act freely, he gives to such as 
earnestly and honestly desire to do right all needed strength 
and encouragement to do it. Therefore, my dear son, do 
not cheat yourself by doing what you suspect may be wrong. 
You are as much accountable to your Maker for an enlight- 
ened exercise of your conscience, as you would be to me to 
use due diligence in taking care of a bag of money which I 
might send by you to Mr. W. If you were to throw it upon 
deck, or into the bottom of the coach, you would certainly 
be culpable ; but, if you packed it carefully in your trunk, 
and placed the trunk in the usual situation, it would be 
using common care. So in the exercise of your conscience : 
if you refuse to examine whether an action is right or 
wrong, you voluntarily defraud yourself of the guide pro- 
vided by the Almighty. If you do wrong, you have no 
better excuse than he who had done so willingly and wil- 
fully. It is the sincere desire that will be accepted." 

Tp tis son, then at school in Andover, he wiites : — 

" I received your note yesterday, and was prepared to 
hear your cash fell short, as a dollar-bill was found in your 
chamber on the morning you left home. You now see the 
benefit of keeping accounts, as you would not have been 
sure about this loss without having added up your account. 
Get the habit firmly fixed of putting down every cent you 
receive and every cent you expend. In this way, you will 
acc[uire some knowledge of the relative value of things, and 
a habit of judging and of care which will be of use to you 
during all your life. Among the numerous people who have 
failed in business within my knowledge, a prominent cause 
has been a want of system in their business, by which to 
know when their expenses and losses exceeded their profits. 
This habit is as necessary for a professional man as for a 



56 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

merchant ; because, in their business, there are numerous 
ways to make little savings, if they find their income too 
small, which they would not adopt without looking into the 
detail of all their expenses. It is the habit of consideration 
I wish you to acquire ; and the habit of being accurate will 
have an influence upon your whole character in life." 

To HIS Son in Fkance. 

" AprU 28, 1829. 

" I beseech you to consider well the advantages you 
enjoy, and to avail yourself of your opportunities to give 
your manners a little more ease and polish ; for, you may 
depend upon it, manners are highly important in your 
intercourse with the world. Good principle, good temper, 
and good manners, will carry a man through the world much 
better than he can get along with the absence of either. The 
most important is good principles. Without these, the best 
manners, although, for a time, very acceptable, cannot sus- 
tain a person in trying situations. 

" If you live to attain the age of thirty, the interim will 
appear but a span ; and yet, at that time, you will be in the 
full force of manhood. To look forward to that period, it 
seems very long ; and it is long enough to make great 
improvement. Do not omit the opportunity to acquire a 
character and habits that will continue to improve during the 
remainder of life. At its close, the reflection that you have 
thus done will be a support and stay worth more than any 
sacrifice you may ever feel called on to make in acquiring 
these habits." 

To THE Same. 

" June 7, 1829. 

" I was forcibly reminded, on entering our tomb last 

evening, of the inroads which death has made in our family 

since 1811, at the period when I purchased it. How soon 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 57 

any of us who survive may mingle our dust with theirs, is 
only known to Omniscience ; but, at longest, it can be in his 
view but a moment, a mere point of time. How important, 
then, to us who can use this mere point for om- everlasting 
good, that we should do it, and not squander it as a thing 
without value ! Think upon this, my son ; and do not 
merely admit the thought into your mind and drive it out 
by vain imaginations, but give it an abiding and practical 
use. To set a just value upon time, and to make a just use 
of it, deprives no one of any rational pleasure : on the 
contrary, it encourages temperance in the enjoyment of all 
the good things which a good Providence has placed within 
our reach, and thankfulness for all opportunities of bestowing 
happiness on our fellow-beings. Thus you have an oppor- 
tunity of making me and your other friends happy, by 
diligence in your studies, temperance, truth, integrity, and 
purity of life and conversation. I may not write to you 
again for a number of weeks, as I shall commence a journey 
to Canada in a few days. You will get an accovxnt of the 
joxu'ney fi'om some of the party." 



58 



CHAPTEE X. 



JOURNEY TO CANADA. — LETTERS. — DIARY. — HABITS OF 
EXERCISE. 



Mr. Lawrence, with a large party, left Boston on 
the 13th of June, and passed through Vermont, 
across the Green Mountains, to Montreal and Quebec. 
Compared with these days of railroad facilities, the 
journey was slow. It was perfoimed very leisurely 
in hired private vehicles, and seems to have been 
much enjoyed. He gives a glowing account of the 
beauty of the scenery through which he passed, as 
well as his impressions of the condition of the popu- 
lation. In alluding to Quebec, he writes : — 

" The air and appearance of the city indicate that the 
military etiquette prevails. There is more appearance of 
nobility or royalty and poverty than I have been accustomed 
to see. The few appear splendidly, the many most meanly ; 
and I bless God for casting my lot in a good land, where all 
have the means of education, and a fair chance to acquire 
the honors and distinctions that stimulate to high and noble 
deeds." 



DIARY AND CORKESPONDENCE. 59 

From Quebec the party proceeded to Niagara Falls, 
and returned through the St^e of New York to 
Boston, " greatly improved in health and spirits." 
This was the only occasion on which Mr. Lawrence 
ever left the territory of the United States ; for, 
though sometimes tempted, in after-years, to visit the 
Old World, his occupations and long-continued feeble 
health prevented his doing so. 

To HIS Son. 

" July 27. 

" If, in an endeavor to do right, we fall short, we shall 

still be in the way of duty ; and that is first to be looked at. 

We must keep in mind that we are to render an account of 

the use of those talents which are committed to us ; and we 

are to be judged by unerring "Wisdom, which can distinguish 

all the motives of action as well as weigh the actions. As 

our stewardship has been faithful or otherwise will be the 

sentence pronounced upon us. Give this your best thoughts, 

for it is a consideration of vast importance." 

"Aug. 27. 
" Bring home no foreign fancies which are inapplicable to 
our state of society. It is very common for our young men 
to come home, and appear quite ridiculous in attempting to 
introduce their foreign fashions. It should be always kept 
in mind, that the state of society is widely different here 
from that in Europe ; and our comfort and character require 
it should long remain so. Those who strive to introduce 
many of the European habits and fashions, by displacing our 
own, do a serious injury to the republic, and deserve censure. 
An idle person, with good powers of mind, becomes torpid 
and inactive after a few years of indulgence, and is incapable 
of making any high effort : highly important it is, then, to 



60 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

avoid this enemy of meatal and moral improvement. I 
have no wish that you pursue trade. I would rather see you 
on a farm, or studying any profession." 

"Oct. 16. 

" It should always be your aim to so conduct yourself, 
that those whom you value most in the world would approve 
your conduct, if all your actions were laid bare to their 
inspection ; and thus you will be pretty sui-e that He who 
sees the motive of all our actions will accept the good 
designed, though it fall short in its accomplishment. You 
are young, and are placed in a situation of great peril, and 
are perhaps sometimes tempted to do things which you would 
not do if you knew yourself under the eye of yoiu- guardian. 
The blandishments of a beautiful city may lead you to forget 
that you are always surrounded, supported, and seen by that 
best Guardian." 

"Dec. 27. 
" I suppose Christmas is observed with great pomp in 
France. It is a day which our Puritan forefathers, in their 
separation from the Church of England, endeavored to blot 
out from the days of religious festivals ; and this because it 
was observed with so much pomp by the Romish Church. 
In this, as well as in many other things, they were as unrea- 
sonable as though they had said they would not eat bread 
because the Roman Catholics do. I hope and trust the time 
is not far distant, when Christmas will be observed by the 
descendants of the Puritans with all suitable respect, as the 
first and highest holiday of Christians ; combining all the feel- 
ings and views of New England Thanksgiving, with all the 
other feelings appropriate to it." 

"Jan. 31. 
" You have seen, perhaps, that the Directors of the Bun- 
ker Hill Monument Association have applied to the Legisla- 



DIARY AND CORKESPONDENCE. 61 

turc for a lottery. I am extremely sorry for it. I opposed 
the measure in all its stages, amd feel mortified they have 
done so. They cannot get it, and I desire that General La- 
fayette may understand this ; and, if he will write us a few 
lines during the coming year, it will help us in getting for- 
ward a subscription. When our citizens shall have had one 
year of successful business, they will be ready to give to 
finish the monument. My feelings are deeply interested in 
it, believing it liighly valuable as a nucleus for the affections 
of the people in after-time ; and, if my life be spared and my 
success continue, I will never cease my efforts until it be 
completed." 

Further details will be given in this volume to 
show how nobly Mr. Lawrence persevered in the reso- 
lution thus deliberately formed ; and, though he was 
destined to witness many fruitless efforts, he had the 
satisfaction at last of seeing the completion of the 
monument, and, from its summit, of pointing out 
the details of the battle to the son of one of the Bri- 
tish generals in command * on that eventful day. 

On the same page with the estimate of his property 
for the year 1830, he writes : — 

" With a view to know the amount of my expenditures 
for objects other than the support of my family, I have, for 
the year 1829, kept a particular account of such other 
expenses as come under the denomination of charities, and 
appropriations for the benefit of others not of my own house- 
hold, for many of whom I feel under the same obligation as 
for my own family." 

* Lord Prudoe, now Duke of Northumberland. 



63' DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

This memorandum was commenced on the 1st of 
January, 1829, and is continued until December 30, 
1852, the last day of his life. This volume contains a 
complete statement of his charities during that whole 
period, including not only what he contributed in 
money, but also all other donations in the shape of 
clothing materials, books, provisions, &c. His cus- 
tom was to note down at cost the value of the dona- 
tion, after it had been dispatched ; whether in the 
shape of a book, a turkey, or one of his immense 
bundles of varieties to some poor country minister's 
family, as large, as he says in addressing one, " as a 
small haycock." Two rooms ia his house, and some- 
times three, were used principally for the reception of 
useful articles for distribution. There, when stormy 
weather or ill health prevented him from taking his 
usual drive, he was in the habit of passing hours in 
selecting and packing up articles which he considered 
suitable to the wants of those whom he wished to aid. 
On such days, his coachman's services were put in 
requisition to pack and tie up " the small haycocks ; " 
and many an illness was the result of over-exertion 
and fatigue in suppljing the wants of his poorer 
brethren. These packages were selected according to 
the wants of the recipients, and a memorandum made 
of the contents. In one case, he notifies Professor 

, of College, that he has sent by railroad 

" a barrel and a bundle of books, with broadcloth and 
pantaloon stuffs, with odds and ends for poor students 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 63 

when they go out to keep school in the winter." 
Another, for the president of a college at the West, 
one piece silk and worsted, for three dresses ; one 
piece of plaid, for " M. and mamma ; " a lot of pretty 
books ; a piece of lignum-vitse from the Navy Yard, as 
a text for the support of the navy ; and various items 
for the children : value, ^25. 

To a professor in a college in a remote region, he 
sends a package containing " dressing-gown, vest, 
hat, slippers, jack-knife, scissors, pins, neck-handker- 
chiefs, pantaloons, cloth for coat, ' History of Groton,' 
lot of pamphlets," &c. 

Most of the packages forwarded contained substan- 
tial articles for domestic use, and were often accom- 
panied by a note containing from five to fifty dollars 
in money. 



64 



CHAPTEE XL 



LETTERS. — CORRESPONDENCE WITH MR. WEBSTER. 



To HIS Son. 

"Feb. 5, 1830. 
" Be sure and visit La Grange before you return : say to 
General Lafayette that the Bunker Hill Monument will cer- 
tainly be finished, and that the foolish project of a lottery 
has been abandoned. If, in the course of Providence, I 
should be taken away, I hope my children will feel it a duty 
to continue the efforts that are made in this work, which I 
have had so much at heart, and have labored so much for." 

To his son, then at school at Versailles, he writes* 
on Feb. 26, 1830 : — 

" After hearing from you again, I can judge better what 
to advise respecting your going into Spain. At all events, 
let no hope of going or seeing, or doing any thing else, pre- 
vent your using the present time for improving yourself in 
whatever you find to do. My greatest fear is, that you may 
form a wrong judgment of what constitutes your true respect- 
ability, happiness, and usefulness. To a youth just entering 
on the scenes of life, the roses on the wayside appear without 
thorns j but, in the eagerness to snatch them, many find, to 
their sorrow, that all which appeal's so fair is not in posses- 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 65 

sion what it was in prospect, and that beneath the rose there 
is a thorn that sometimes wounds like a serpent's bite. Let 
not appearances deceive you ; for, when once you have 
strayed, the second temptation is more likely to be fallen into 
than the first." 

"March 6, 1830. 
" We are all in New England deeply interested by Mr. 
Webster's late grand speech in the Senate, vindicating New 
England men and New England measures from reproach 
heaped upon them by the South : it was his most powerful 
effort, and you will see the American papers are full of it. 
You should read the whole debate between him and INIr. 
Hayne of South Carolina : you will find much to instruct 
and interest you, and much of what you ought to know. 
Mr. Webster never stood so high in this country as at this 
moment ; and I doubt if there be any man, either in Europe 
or America, his superior. The doctrines upon the Constitu- 
tion in this speech should be read as a text-book by all our 
youth." 

After reading the great speech of Mr. Webster, Mr. 
Lawrence addressed to that gentleman a letter, ex- 
pressing his admiration of the manner in which New 
^England had been vindicated, and also his own per- 
sonal feelings of gratitude for the proud stand thus 
taken. 

Mr. Webster replied as follows : — 

"WASKiNaTON, March 8, 1830. 

" Dear Sir, — I thank you very sincerely for your very 

kind and friendly letter. The sacrifices made in being here, 

and the mortifications sometimes experienced, are amply 

compensated by the consciousness that my friends at home 



66 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCB. 

feel that I have done some little service to our New England. 
I pray you to remember me with very true regai'd to Mrs. 
Lawrence, and believe me 

" Very faithfully and gratefully yours, 

" Daniel Webster. 

"To Amos Lawkence, Esq." 

ExTR-vCTS OF Letters to his Son. 

"AprU 13, 1830. 

" You may feel very sure that any study which keeps 
your mind engaged will be likely to strengthen it ; and that, 
if you leave your mind inactive, it will run to waste. Your 
arm is strengthened by wielding a broadsword, or even a foil. 
Your legs by various gymnastic exercises, and the organs of 
sight and hearing by careful and systematic use, are greatly 
improved ; even the finger is trained, by the absence of 
sight, to perform almost the service of the eye. All this 
shows how natural it is for all the powers to grow stronger 
by use. You needed not these examples to convince you ; 
but my desire to have you estimate your advantages properly 
induces mp to write upon them very often. Every American 
youth owes liis country his best talents and sei'vices, and 
should devote them to the country's welfare. In doing that, 
you will promote not only your own welfare, but your high- 
est enjoyment. 

"The duty of an American citizen, at this period of 
the world, is that of a responsible agent ; and he should 
endeavor to transmit to the next age the institutions of oiu- 
country uninjured and improved. We hope, in your next 
letter, to hear something more of General Lafayette. The 
old gentleman is most warm in his aifection for Americans. 
May he live long to encoui-age and bless by his example the 
good of all countries ! In contemplating a life like his, who 
can say that compensation even here is not fully made for 



DIARY AND COHRESPONDENCE. 67 

all the anguish and suffering he has formerly endured ? Long 
life does not consist in many years ; but in the period being 
filled with good services to our fellow-beings. He whose 
life ends at thirty may have done much, while he who has 
reached the age of one hundred may have done little. With 
the Almighty, a thousand years are a moment ; and he will 
therefore give no credit to any talents not used to his glory j 
which use is the same thing as promoting, by all means in 
our power, the welfare and happiness of the beings among 
whom we are placed." 

"May 7, 1830. 
" I have been pretty steady at my business, without work- 
ing hard, or having anxious feelings about it. It is well to 
have an agreeable pursuit to employ th& mind and body. I 
think that I can work for the next six years with as good a 
relish as ever I did ; but I make labor a pleasure. I have 
just passed into my forty-fifth year, you know. At my age, 
I hope you will feel as vigorous and youthful as I now do. 
A temperate use of the good things of life, and a freedom 
from anxious cares, tend, as much as any thing, to keep off 
old age." 

"June 17, 1830. 
" To-day completes fifty-five years since the glorious bat- 
tle of Bunker Hill, and five years since the nation's guest 
assisted at the laying of the corner-stone of the monument 
which is to commemorate to all future times the events which 
followed that battle. If it should please God to remove me 
before this structure is completed, I hope to remember it in 
my will, and that my sons will live to see it finished. But 
what I deem of more consequence is to retain for posterity 
the battle-field, now in the possession of the Bunker Hill 
Monument Association. The Association is in debt, and a 



68 DIARY AND CORRESPOKUE^'CE. 

part of the land may pass out of its possession ; but I hope, 
if it do, there will be spii-it enough among individuals to 
purchase it and restore it again ; for I would rather the whole 
work should not be resumed for twenty years, than resume 
it by parting with the land. I name this to you now, that 
you may have a distinct intimation of my wishes to keep the 
land open for our children's cliildren to the end of time." 

"July 17, 1830. 
" Temptation, if successfully resisted, strengthens the cha- 
racter ; but it should always be avoided. ' Lead us not into 
temptation ' are words of deep meaning, and should always 
carry with them corresponding desires of obedience. At a 
large meeting of merchants and others held ten days ago, it 
was resolved to make an effort to prevent the licensing of 
such numbers of soda-shops, retailers of spirits, and the like, 
which have, in my opinion, done more than any thing else 
to debase and ruin the youth of our city. It is a gross per- 
version of our privileges to waste and destroy ourselves in 
this way. God has given us a good land and many bless- 
ings. We misuse them, and make them minister to our 
vices. We shall be called to a strict account. Every good 
citizen owes it to his God and his country to stop, as far as 
he can, this moral desolation. Let me see you, on your 
return, an advocate of good order and good morals. Our 
oli neighbor the sea-serpent was more than usually accom- 
modating the day after we left Portsmouth. He exhibited 
himself to a great number of people who were at Hampton 
Beach last Saturday. They had a full view of his snakeship 
from the shore. He was so civil as to raise his head about 
four feet, and look into a boat, where were three men, who 
thought it the wisest way to retreat to their cabin. His 
length is supposed to be about one himdred feet, his head 
the size of a ten-gallon cask, and his body, in the largest 



DIARY AND COKRESPONDENCE. 69 

part, about the size of a barrel. I have never had any more 
doubt respecting the existence of this animal, since he was 
seen here eleven years ago, than I have had of the existence 
of Bonaparte. The evidence was as strong to my mind of 
the one as of the other! I had never seen either ; but I was 
as well satisfied of the existence of both, as I should have 
been had I seen both. And yet the idea of the sea-serpent's 
existence has been scouted and ridiculed." 

"Sept. 25. 
" The events of the late French Revolution have reached 
us up to the 17th August. The consideration of them is 
animating, and speaks in almost more than human language. 
We are poor, frail, and mortal beings ; but there is some- 
thing elevating in the thought of a whole people acting as 
with the mind and the aim of one man, a part which allies 
man to a higher order of beings. I confess it makes me feel 
a sort of veneration for them ; and I trust that no extrava- 
gance will occur to mar the glory and the dignity of this 
enterprise. Our beloved old hero, too, acting as the guiding 
and presiding genius of this wonderful event. May God 
prosper them, and make it to the French people what it is 
capable of being, if they make a right use of it ! I hope that 
you have been careful to see and learn every thing, and 
that you will preserve the information you obtain in such a 
form as to recall the events to your mind a long time hence. 
We are all very well and very busy, and in fine spirits here 
in the old town of Boston. Those who fell behind last year 
have some of them placed themselves in the rear rank, and 
are again on duty. Others are laid up, unfit for duty ; and 
the places of all are supplied with fresh troops. We now 
present as happy and as busy a community as you would 
desire to see." 



70 



CHAPTER XII. 



TESTIMONIAL TO MR. WEBSTER. — DANGEROUS ILLNESS. 
LETTERS. 



During the autvimn of 1830, in order to testify 
in, a more marked manner his appreciation of Mr. 
Webster's distinguished services in the Senate of the 
United States, Mr. Lawrence presented to that gentle- 
man a service of silver plate, accompanied by the 
following note : — 

" Hon. Daniel Webster. " Boston, Oct. 23, 1830. 

" Dear Sir, — Permit me to .request your acceptance of 
the accompanying small service of plate, as a testimony of 
m.y gratitude for your services to the country in your late 
efforts in the Senate ; especially for your vindication of the 
character of Massachusetts and of New England. 
" From your friend and fellow-citizen, 

"Amos Lawkence. 

" P. S. — If by any emblem or inscription on any piece of 

' this service, referring to the circumstances of which this is 

a memorial, the whole will be made more acceptable, I shall 

be glad to have you designate what it shall be, and permit 

me the opportunity of adding it." 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 71 

To which Mr. Webster replied, on the same evening, 
as follows : — 

" Summer Stseet, Oct. 23, 1830. 

" My dear Sir, — I cannot well express my sense of your 
kindness, manifested in the present of plate, which I have 
received this evening. I know that, from you, this token of 
respect is sincere ; and I shall ever value it, and be happy in 
leaving it to my children, as a most gratifying evidence of 
your friendship. The only thing that can add to its value 
is- your permission that it may be made to bear an inscription 
expressive of the donation. 

" I am, dear sir, with unfeigned esteem, 

" Your friend and obedient servant, 

" Daniel Webster. 
" Amos Lawrence, Esa." 

To HIS Son. 

" Boston, Jan. 16, 1831. 
" Our local affairs are very delightful in this state and 
city. We have no violent political animosities ; and the 
prosperity of the people is very great. In our city in 
particular, the people have not had greater prosperity for 
twenty years. There is a general industry and talent in our 
population, that is calculated to produce striking results 
upon their character. In your reflections upon your course, 
you may settle it as a principle, that no man can attain any 
valuable influence or character among us, who does not labor 
with whatever talents he has to increase the sum of human 
improvement and happiness. An idler, who feels that he 
has no responsibilities, but is contriving to get rid of time 
without being useful to any one, whatever be his fortune, 
can find no comfort in staying here. We have not enough 
such to make up a society. We are literally all working- 



72 DIARY ANU CORRESPONDENCE. 

men ; and the attempt to get up a ' "Woikiug-men's partj' ' 
is a libel upon the wliole population, as it implies that there 
are among us liu'ge numbers who ai'e not working-men He 
is a working-man whose mind is employed, whether in 
making researches into the meaning of hieroglyphics or in 
demonstrating any invention in the arts, just as much as he 
who cuts down the forest, or holds the plough, or swings 
the sledge-hammer. Therefore let it bo the sentiment of 
your heart to use all the talents and powers you may possess 
in the advancement of the moral and political influence of 
New England. New England, I say ; for here is to be the 
stronghold of liberty, and the seat of influence to the vast 
multitude of millions who are to people this republic." 

At the period when the preceding letter was writ- 
ten, the manufacturing interest had become of vast 
importance in this community ; and the house of 
which Mr. Lawrence was the senior partner had 
identified itself with the progress of many of the great 
manufacturing corporations already created, or then 
in progress. "With siicli pecuniary, interests at stake, 
and with a sense of responsibility for the success of 
these enterprises, which had been projected on a scale 
and plan hitherto unknown, it may be supposed that 
his mind and energies were fully taxed, and that 
he could be fairly ranked among the working-men 
alluded to. ^Miile in the full tide of active life, and, 
as it were, at the crowning point of a successful 
'career, the hand of Providence was laid upon him to 
remove him, for the rest of his days, from this sphere 
of honor and acti^dty to the chamber of the invalid, 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 73 

and the comparatively tame and obscure walks of 
domestic life. Ever after this, his life hung upon a 
thread ; and its very uncertainty, far from causing 
him to despond and rest from future effort, seemed 
only to excite the desire to work while the day 
lasted. The discipline thus acquired, instead of 
consigning him to the inglorious obscurity of a sick 
chamber, was the means of his entering upon that 
career of active philanthropy which is now the great 
source of whatever distinction there may be attached 
to his memory. His business life was ended ; and, 
though he was enabled to advise with others, and give 
sometimes a direction to the course of affairs, he 
assumed no responsibility, and had virtually retired 
from the field. 

On the 1st of June, 1831, the weather being very 
warm, Mr. Lawrence, while engaged in the business 
of his counting-room, drank moderately of cold water, 
and, soon after, was seized with a violent and alarm- 
ing illness. The functions of the stomach seemed 
to have been destroyed ; and, for many days, there 
'remained but small hope of his recovery. Much 
sympathy was expressed by his friends and the public, 
and in such a manner as to afford gratification to his 
family, as well as surprise to himself when sufficiently 
recovered to be informed of it. He had not yet 
learned the place which he had earned, in the esti- 
mation of those around him, as a merchant and a 
citizen ; and it was not unlikely a stimulus to merit, 



74 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

by his future course, the high encomiums which were 
then laAished upon him. 

Mr. Lawrence anuouuccd his sickness to his son, 
then in Spain, in the following letter, dated — 

" Boston-, June 27, 1831. 
" I desire to bless God for being again permitted to 
address you in this way. On the 1st day of tliis month, I 
was seized with a violent illness, which caused both myself 
and my friends almost to despair of my life. But, by the 
blessing of Grod, the remedies proved efficacious ; and I am 
still in the land of the living, with a comfortable prospect of 
acquiring my usual health, although, thus far. not allowed 
to leave my cliamber. In that diead hour when I thought 
that the next perhaps would be my last on eaith, — my 
thoughts resting upon my God and Saviour, then upon the 
past scenes of my life, then upon my dear children, — 
the belief that their minds are well directed, and that they 
will prove blessings to society, and fulfil, in some good 
degree, the design of Providence in placing them here, was 
a balm to ,my spu'its that proved more favorable to my 
recovery than any of the other remedies. May you never 
forget that every man is individually responsible for his 
actions, and must be held accountable for his opportunities ! 
Thus he who has ten talents will receive a proportionate 
reward, if he makes a right use of them ; and he who 
receives one will be punished, if he hides it in a napkin." 

"June 29, 1831. 

" My deal- and ever-honored Mother, — Through the 

, divine goodness, I am once more enabled to address you by 

letter, after having passed through an alarming sickness to 

my friends, although to myself a comparatively quiet one. 

I cannot in words express my grateful sense of God's good- 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 75 

ness in thus carrying me, as it were, in his hand, and lighting 
the way by the brightness of his countenance. During tliat 
period in which I considered my recovery as hardly probable, 
my mind was calm ; and while, in review of the past, I 
found many things to lament, and, in contemplation of the 
future, much to fear, but more to hope, I could find no other 
words in which to express my thoughts than the words of 
the publican, — ' God be merciful to me a sinner ! ' All the 
small distinctions of sects and forms dwindled into air, thin 
air, and seemed to me even more worthless than ever. The 
cares and anxieties of the world did not disturb me, believing 
it to be of small moment whether I should be taken now or 
spared a few yeai-s longer. With returning health and 
strength, different prospects open, and different feelings take 
the place of those which were then so appropriate ; and the 
social feelings and sympathies have their full share in their 

hold upon me 

" From your ever-loving and dutiful son, A. L." 



" July 14. 
" I have been constantly gaining since my last to you, 
and, with constant care, hope to acquire my usual health. I 
am, however, admonished by the two attacks I have expe- 
rienced within a month, that the continuance of my life for 
■ any considerable period will be very likely to depend upon 
a rigid prudence in my labor and living. The recovery from 
this last sickness is almost like being restored to life ; and I 
hope the span that may be allowed me may be employed in 
better service than any period of my past life. We are 
placed here to be disciplined for another and higher state ; 
and whatever happens to us makes a part of this discipline. 
In this view, we ought never to murmur, but to consider, 
when ills befall us, how we can make them subserve our 



76 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

highest good. What I am more desirous than any thing 
else for you is, that you may feel that you are accountable 
for all your talents, and that you may so use them as to have 
an approving conscience, and the final recompense of a 
faithful servant, at last. The period of trial is short ; but 
the consequences are never-ending. How important to each 
individual, then, — to you and to me, — that we use aright 
the period assigned us ! " 



77 



CHAPTER XIII. 



JOURNEY TO NEW HAMPSHIRE. — LETTERS. — RESIGNS OF- 
FICE OF TRUSTEE AT HOSPITAL. — LETTERS. 



A FEW days after the date of the preceding letter, a 
change was thought desirable for the improvement of 
Mr. Lawrence's health ; and he accordingly, with Mrs. 
Lawrence, went to Portsmouth, New Hampshire, and 
remained a week with his friend and brother-in-law, 
the late Hon. Jeremiah Mason. From thence he 
proceeded to visit friends in Amherst, New Hamp- 
shire, where he was attacked by a severe rheumatic 
fever, which confined him for several weeks ; and it 
was with great difiiculty that he succeeded in reaching 
home about the 20th of September, after an absence 
of nearly two months. On the 27th of September, 
he writes to his son : — 

" It is only within a few days that I have been able to be 
removed to my own house. I am now able to walk my 
chamber, and sit up half the day ; and, by the best care in 
the world, I have a fair hope of again enjoying so much 
health as to feel that I may yet be of some use in the world. 
My bodily sufferings have been great during this last sick- 



lb DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

ness ; but my mind in general has been quiet. I seem to 
want nothing which this world can give to make me an 
enviably happy man, but your presence and a return of my 
health ; but these last are wisely withheld. We are apt, in 
the abundance of the gift, to lose the recollection whence it 
came, and feel by our own power we can go forward. Happy 
for us that we are thus made to feel that all we have is from 
God : this recurrence to the Source of all our blessings 
makes us better men. I do not expect to be able to leave 
the house before the next spring ; and, in the meantime, 
must be subject to the casualties incident to a person in my 
situation." 

On October 29, Mr. Lawrence, in a letter to the 
same son, expresses his gratitude for the enjoyment of 
life, " even in a sick chamber, as mine must be 
termed." 

" I receive my friends here, and once only have walked 
abroad for a few minutes. I di-ive in a carriage every plea- 
sant day, and I can truly say that my days pass in the full 
enjoyment of more than the average of comfort. My mind 
is as easy as it ever is, and as active as is safe for the body. 
I employed myself yesterday in looking over your letters 
since you left home three years ago, and was reminded by 
them that the fourth year of your absence has just com- 
menced. Although a brief space since it is passed, an equal 
time, if we look forward, appears to be far distant. The 
question you will naturally ask yourself is. How has the time 
been spent? and, from the answer, you may gather much 
instruction for the futiure. If you have made the best use 
of this period, happy is it for you, as the habit of the useful 
application of your time will make its continuance more 



UIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 79 

natural and easy. If you have misused and abused your 
opportunities, there is not a moment to be lost in retracing 
your steps, and making good, by future eflFort, what has been 
lost by want of it. In short, we can none of us know that 
a future will be allowed us to amend and to correct our pre- 
vious misdoings and omissions ; and it is not less the part of 
wisdom than of duty to be always up and doing, that, when- 
ever our Master comes, we may be ready. I never was 
made so sensible before of the power of the mind over the 
body. It is a matter of surprise to some of my friends, who 
have known my constant habits of business for a quarter of a 
century, that I can find so much comfort and quiet in the 
confinement of my house, when I feel so well, and there are 
so many calls for my labors abroad. I hope to pursue such a 
discreet course as shall allow me to come forth in the spring 
with my poor frame so far renovated and restored as to 
enable me to take my place among the active laborers of the 
day, and do what little I may for the advancement and well- 
being of my generation. If, however, I should, by any acci- 
dent or exposure, be again brought to a bed of pain and 
sufiering, may God grant me a patient and submissive temper 
to bear whatever may be put upon me, with a full conviction 
that such chastisements will tend to my good, if I make a 
right use of them ! " 

The first of Januarj% 1832, found Mr. Lawrence 
confined to his sick-room, and unable, from bodily 
weakness, to drive out in the open air, as he had 
hitherto done. He writes to his son : — 

" 1 am reminded, by the new year, that another portion of 
time has passed, by which we are accustomed to measure in 
prospect the space that is allotted us here ; and the reflec- 



80 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

tions at the close of the old and the commencement of the 
new year are calculated, if we do not cheat ourselves, to make 
us better than we otherwise should be. I am enjoying my- 
self highly under the close confinement of two parlor cham- 
bers, from which I have only travelled into the entry since 
November. I have lived pretty much as other prisoners of 
a difierent character live, as regards food ; viz., on bread and 
water, or bread and coffee or cocoa. I have come to the 
conclusion that the man who lives on bread and water, if he 
have enough, is the genuine epicure, according to the origi- 
nal and true meaning. I am favored with the visits of more 
pretty and interesting ladies than any layman in the city, I 
believe. My rooms ai'e quite a resort ; and, old fellow as 
I am, I have the vanity to suppose I render myself quite 
agreeable to them." 

To THE Same. 

"Sunday Morning, Feb. 5, 1832. 
" I have seated myself at my writing-desk, notwithstand- 
ing it is holy time, in the hope and belief that I am in the 
way of duty. This consecration of one day in seven to the 
duties of religion, — comprising, as these do, every duty, — 
and if they be well performed to self-examination, is a glo- 
rious renovation of the world. Who that has witnessed the 
effects of this rest upon the moral and physical condition of 
a people can doubt the wisdom of the appointment ? Wher- 
ever we turn om- eyes or our thoughts, if we only will be as 
honest and candid in our estimate of the value of the provi- 
sion made for us as we ordinarily are in our estimate of the 
character and conduct of our fellow-men, we must be struck 
with admiration and gratitude to that merciful Father who 
has seen our wants, and provided for our comfort to an extent 
to which the care and provision of the best earthly parents 
for their children hardly gives the name of resemblance." 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. bl 

In speaking of some application for aid which he 
had received from a charitable institution, he writes 
to his son : — 

" Our people are liberally disposed, and contribute to 
most objects which present a fair claim to their aid. I think 
you will find great advantage in doing this part of your duty 
upon a system which you can adopt ; thus, for instance, 
divide your expenses into ten parts, nine of which may be 
termed for what is considered necessary, making a liberal 
calculation for such as your situation would render proper, 
and one part applied for the promotion of objects not directly 
or legally claiming your support, but such as every good 
citizen would desire to have succeed. This, I think, you 
will find the most agreeable part of your expense ; and, if 
you should be favored with an abundance of means later in 
life, you may enlarge your appropriations of this sort, so as 
to be equal to one-tenth of your income. Neither yourself 
nor those who depend upon you will ever feel the poorer. 
I assume that you have plenty, in thus fixing the proportion. 
I believe the rule might be profitably adopted by many who 
have small means ; for they would save more by method than 
they would be required to pay. 

To-morrow completes a hundred years since the birth of 
Washington. The day will be celebrated from one end of the 
country to the other, with suitable demonstrations of respect, 
by processions, orations, and religious ceremonies, according 
to the feelings of the people who join in it. I think the spec- 
tacle will be a grand one, of a whole people brought together 
to commemorate the birth of one of their fellow-mortals, who, 
by his virtues and his talents, has made his memory immortal ; 
and whose precepts and example are calculated to secure 
happiness to the countless millions of his fellow-beings who 
are to people this vast empire through all future time. It is 



82 DIARY AND COKKESPOXDKSCE. 

permitted to few to have open to them such a field as W ash- 
ington had ; but no one since the Christian era has filled his 
sphere so gloriously. We are jogging along in political, 
theological, and commercial affairs veiy much as usual." 

During tlie mouth of January. Mi*. Lawrence, on 
accoimt of ill health, resigned his seat in the Board of 
Trustees of the Massachusetts General Hospital, in 
which he had served for several years. This duty 
had always been one of immingled pleasure to him ; 
and, by means of his \-isits there, and at the McLean 
Asylum for the Insane, under the management of the 
same Board, he became conversant with a class of 
sufferers which had excited a great interest in his 
mind, and whom he often visited, during the remain- 
der of his life, to cheer and convey to them such 
little tokens of kindness as assured them of his inte- 
rest and sympathy. 

Tn a letter to his son at Andover, he writes, 
April -21 : — 

" You will be glad to hear I have got along very well 
through the wet, cold weather of the week, and am looking 
forward with cheerful hope to the sunny days to come. If 
it wore not for my faculty of turning present disappointments 
to future pleasiu'es in prospect, I should run down in spirits. 
I have always indulged myself in castle-building ; but have 
generally taken care so to build as to be in no danger of their 
falling on my head, so that when I have gone as far with one 
as was safe, if it does not promise well, I transfer my labor 
to another, and thus am always supplied with objects. The 
last one finished was commenced List May, and it is one I 



DIAKY AND COKKESl'OXDF.XCE. 8S 

delight to think of. It was then I determined to get your 
Uncle Mason* here. N. thought it a castle without founda- 
tion, hut the result shows otherwise. 

" I send some of W.'s late letters, by which you per- 
ceive he is not idle : the thought of the dear fellow 
makes the tears start. God in mercy grant him a safe 
return, fully impressed with his obligations as a man and 
a Christian ! That I ;im now living in the enjoyment of 
so much health, surrounded by so many blessings, is over- 
powering to my feelings. "What shall I render unto God 
for all these benefits ? I feel my unworthiness, and devoutly 
pray him that I may never lose sight of the great end of my 
being ; and that, whenever it shall please him to call me 
hence, I may be found in the company of the redeemed 
through the merits and mediation of the Son of his love. 
If there is any one thing I would impress on your mind 
more strongly than another, it is to give good heed to the 
religious impressions with which you may be imbued ; and, at 
a future day, these may prove a foundation that will support 
you when all other supports would fail. The youthful ima- 
gination frequently magnifies objects at a distance : expe- 
rience is an able teacher, and detects, too late perhaps, the 
fraud upon youth. Be wise in time, and avoid this fi-aud." 

A few days later, he writes to the same son, ou the 
suhject of systematic charity : — 

" It is one of my privileges, not less than one of my 
duties, to be able thus to administer to the comfort of a 
circle of very dear friends. I hope you will one day have 
the delightful consciousness of using a portion of yo\u- 
means in a way to give you as much pleasure as I now expe- 
rience. Your wants may be brought within a very moderate 

* Hon. J. Mason, of Portsmoath, nho passed the rest of his life in Boston. 



84 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

compass ; and I hope you will never feel yourself at liberty 
to waste on yourself such means, as, by system and right 
principles, may be beneficially applied to the good of those 
around you. Providence has given us unerring principles 
to guide us in our duties of this sort. Our first duty is to 
those of our own household, then extending to kindi'ed, 
friends, neighbors (and the term ' neighbor ' may, in its 
broadest sense, take in the whole human family), citizens of 
our state, then of our country, then of the other countries 
of the world." 

In another letter, written soon after the preceding, 
he speaks of certain principles of business which 
governed him in early life, and adds : — 

" The secret of the whole matter was, that we had formed 
the habit of promptly acting, thus taking the top of the tide ; 
while the habit of some others was to delay until about half- 
tide, thus getting on the flats ; while we were all the time 
prepared for action, and ready to put into any port that 
promised well. I wish, by all these remarks, to impress 
upon you the necessity of qualifying, yourself to support 
yourself. The best education that I can secure shall be 
yours, and such facilities for usefulness as may be in my 
power shall be rendered ; but no food to pamper idleness 
or wickedness will I ever supply willingly to any connection, 
however near. I trust I have none who will ever misuse so 
basely any thing that may come to them as a blessing. This 
letter, you may think, has an undue proportion of advice. 
* Line upon line, precept upon precept,' is recommended by 
I one wiser than I am." 



85 



CHAPTER XIV. 



DAILY EXERCISE. — REGIMEN. — IMPROVING HEALTH. — 
LETTERS. 



During the summer and autumn of this year, Mr. 
Lawrence's health and strength were so much im- 
proved, that he was enabled to take horseback exer- 
cise ; and almost daily took long rides, sometimes 
alone, sometimes with a friend, about the environs of 
the city. This habit he was enabled to continue, with 
some intermissions, for two or three years, through 
summer and winter. The effect of the exercise amidst 
the beautiful scenery of the environs of Boston, of 
which he was a most enthusiastic admirer, was most 
beneficial to his health and strength, and, it is be- 
lieved, was a great means of prolonging his life. 
Whenever he could do so, he secured the company of 
a friend, and kept a horse expressly for the pui-pose. 
As the ride was taken in the morning, when his 
business acquaintances were occupied, his most usual 
companion was some one of the city clergy, whom he 
secured for the occasion, or one of his sons. No 
denominational distinctions seemed to regulate his 



86 DIAKY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

choice of companion on these occasions. His OAvn 
beloved pastor and friend, the Rev. Dr. Lothrop, Eev. 
Drs. Stone and Greenwood, and Father Taylor, the 
seamen's chaplain, were often his companions. Often 
a stray merchant or lawyer was engaged ; and, as 
was sometimes the case where they had not been 
much accustomed to the exercise, a long canter of 
many miles in the sun, or in the face of a keen winter 
north-wester, somewhat taxed their own strength, 
while they wondered how so fraU a figure as that 
of Mr. Lawrence could possess so much endurance. 
With all this apparent energy and strength, he was 
extremely liable to illness, which would come when 
least expected, and confine him for days to his house. 
An item of bad news, some annoying incident, a little 
anxiety, or a slight cold, would, as it were, paralyze 
his digestive functions, and reduce his strength to 
the lowest point. It was this extreme sensitiveness 
which unfitted him to engage in the general current 
of business, and which compelled him to keep aloof 
from participation in commercial afiairs, and to adopt 
that peculiar system in diet and living which he ad- 
hered to for the remainder of his life. This system 
limited him to the use of certain kinds of food, 
which, from time to time, was slightly modified, as 
was thought expedient. This food was of the most 
"simple kind, and was taken in small quantities, after 
being weighed in a balance, which always stood before 
him upon his writing-table. To secure perfect quiet 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 87 

during his meals, and also that he might not be 
tempted to overstep the bounds of prudence, a cer- 
tain amount was sent to him in his chamber, from 
which he took what was allowed. The amount 
of liquid was also weighed ; and so rigid was he in 
this system of diet, that, for the last twenty years of 
his life, he sat down at no meal with his family. The 
amount of food taken varied, of course, with his 
strength and condition. In a letter to his friend. 
President Hopkins, of Williams College, he says : — 

" If your young folks want to know the meaning of 
epicureanism, tell them to take some bits of coarse bread 
(one ounce and a little more), soak them in three gills of 
coarse-meal gruel, and make their dinner of them and 
nothing else ; beginning very hungry, and leaving off more 
hungry. The food is delicious, and such as no modern 
epicureanism can equal." 

For a considerable period, he kept a regular diet- 
table, in which he noted down the quantity of solid 
and liquid food or drink taken during the twenty- 
four hours. One of his memorandum-books, labelled 
" Record of Diet and Discipline for 1839 and 184:0," 
contains accurate records of this sort. 

In October, 1832, in writing to his son in the 
country, he alludes to this improvement in his health 
and strength : — 

" We are all doing as well as usual here, myself among 
them doing better than usual. My little ' Doctor ' * does 

* The name of his horse. 



88 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

wonders for me. I ride so much, and so advantageously, 
that I do not know but I shall be bold enough, by and by, 

to ride to B and back in a day, but shall hai-dly dai-e do 

so until I have practised a little more in this neighborhood. 

" I want you to analyze more closely the tendency of 
principles, associations, and conduct, and strive to adopt such 
as will make it easier for you to go right than go wrong. 
The moral taste, like the natural, is vitiated by abuse. 
Gluttony, tobacco, and intoxicating drink, ai-e not less dan- 
gerous to the latter, than loose principles, bad associations, 
and profligate conduct, ai'e to the former. Look well to all 
these things." 

The year 1833 opened with bright and cheering 
prospects ; for, with Mr. Lawrence's increasing 
strength and improved health, there seemed a strong 
ground of hope that he might j'et recover all his 
powers, and once more take his place among his 
former business associates. 

He writes at this time to his son at Andover : — 

" I am as light as a feather this morning, and feel as if I 
could mount upon a zephyr, and ride upon its back to 

A ; but I am admonished to be careful when my spirits 

are thus buoyant, lest I come down to the torpor of the insect, 
which is shut up by the frost. Extremes ai-e apt to follow, 
unless I take great care. Last sabbath, I kept my bed, most 
of the day, with a poor turn. Brother A. said, on Saturday, 
he knew I was going to have one, for I talked right on." 

In March, he writes : — 

" The season is coming forward now so as to allow me 
the use of the roads around Roxbury and Dorchester. My 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 89 

' Doctor ' looks so altered by a two hours' canter, that his 
own mother would hardly know him at first sight. We 
continue excellent friends ; and I think he has never used 
me better than during the last few days. We both ' feel our 
oats ' and our youth. I feel like sweet twenty-five ; and he, 
I judge, like vigorous seven." 

On April 28, he writes to a young friend : — 

" When you get married, do not expect a higher degree 
of perfection than is consistent with mortality in your wife. 
If you do, you will be disappointed. Be careful, and do 
not choose upon a theory either. I dislike much of the 
nonsense and quackery that is dignified with the name of 
intellectual among people. Old-fashioned common sense is 
a deal better. 

" There was a part of Boston which used to be visited by 
young men out of curiosity when I first came here, into 
which I never set foot for the whole time I remained a 
single man. I avoided it, because I not only wished to keep 
clear of the temptations common in that part, but to avoid 
the appearance of evil. I never regretted it j and I would 
advise all young men to strengthen their good resolutions by 
reflection, and to plant deep and strong the principles of 
right, and to avoid temptation, as time gives them strength 
to stand against it." 

On December 23, he writes to his wife, who had 
been summoned to the bedside of a dying relative : — 

" Your absence makes a great blank in the family ; and I 
feel that I must be very careful lest any little accident should 
make me feel of a deep blue while you are away. Confidence 
is a great matter, not only in curing, but in preventing dis- 
ease, whether of the body or the mind ; and I have somehow 
12 



90 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

got the notion that I am more safe when you* ai'c looking 
after me than when you are not, and that any trouble is 
sooner cured when you are present than when you are not. 
This is, I suppose, the true charm which some people have 
faith in to keep oiF their ills. I have been forcibly reminded 
of the passage of time, by reviewing the scenes of the last 
three years, and am deeply sensible of the mercies that have 
been extended to me. What little I do is a poor return : 
may a better spirit prompt and guide my future services ! 
What few I have rendered ai-e estimated by my brethren 
beyond their value, and of course tend to flatter my self-love. 
This should not be ; and I ought to see myself as I am seen 
by that eye that never sleeps. The situation I occupy is one 
that I would not- exchange, if I had the power, with any man 
living : it is full of agreeable incidents, and free from the 
toils and anxieties frequently attendant on a high state of 
prosperity ; and is, beside, free fr'om that jealousy, or from 
any other cause of uneasiness, so common among the ardent 
and successful in this world's race." 

On February 8, 1835, he writes to a young 
friend : — 

" Take care that fancy does not beguile you of your under- 
standing in making your choice : a mere picture is not all 
that is needful in the up and down hills of life. The 
arrangements of the household and the sick-room have more 
in them to fasten upon the hcait than all the beauties and 
honors of the mere gala days, however successfully shown 

* The editor, in justioe to his own feelings, will hero remark, that he believes the 
continuation of Mr. Lawrence's life, after he became a confirmed invalid, was, under 
Providence, in a great measure due to the care and faithful attentions of his wife. 
For more than twenty years, and during his frequent seasons of languor and sickness, 
she submitted to many sacrifices, and bestowed a degree of care and watchfulness such 
as affeotion alone could have enabled her to render. 



DIARY AND COREESPONDENCE. 91 

off. Be careful, ■when you pick, to get a heart, a soul, and a 
body ; not a show of a body that has mere vitality. All 
this comes in by the ears ; but it is in, — I will not blot it 
out." 

March 16, he writes to his sister : — 

" I have had so much call for my sympathy, assistance, 
and advice, among my brethren in trade, that I have little 
inclination or spirit to write social or family letters since my 
last ; but, in all this turmoil and trouble (and it really is as 
disastrous as a siege or a famine to the country), I have kept 
up a good heart, and have been able to view the work of 
destruction with as much composure as the nature of the 
case will allow. Whatever effects it shall produce on my 
property, I shall submit to, as the inevitable destruction 
that comes without any fault of my own, of course without 
any self-reproaches ; but, for the authors, I feel a just indigna- 
tion. As regards the pecuniary distress among us, it is sub- 
siding : there have been fewer failures than were anticipated ; 
but there have been numbers on the brink, who have been 
saved by the help of friends. A few persons have done 
great service in helping those who could not help themselves ; 
and the consequences will be felt here for years to come in 
the credit and standing of many worthy people, who must 
otherwise have been broken down. Brother A. has had a 
load of cai'e and responsibility much too severe for him, and 
has now agreed to throw off a part of the business as soon 
as the present pressure is past." 

April 29, he writes : — 

" I am busy these days, but have no very important duties, 
except riding with the ministers and the young ladies." 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 



Again, on May 30 : — 

" I am completely on one side, while I appear to be quite 
busy in putting in an oar now and then." 



To HIS Mother. 

"Aug. 16. 

" My dear and honored Mother, — My mind turns back 
to you almost as frequently as its powers are brought into 
separate action, and always with an interest that animates 
and quickens my pulse ; for, under God, it is to your good 
influence and teachings that I am prepared to enjoy those 
blessings which he has so richly scattered in my path in all 
my onward progress in life. How could it be otherwise 
than that your image should be with me, unless I should 
prove wholly unworthy of you ? Your journey is so much 
of it performed, that those objects which interested you 
greatly in its early stages have lost their charms, and well it 
is that they have ; for they now would prove clogs in the 
way ; and it is to your children, to your Savioiu-, and yom- 
God, that your mind and heart now turn as the natural 
sources of pleasure. Each of these, I trust, in their proper 
place and degree, supply all your wants. The cheering pro- 
mise that has encouraged you when your powers were the 
highest will not fail you when the weight of years and 
infirmities have made it more necessary to your comfort to 
get over the few remaining spans of the journey. To God 
I commend you ; and pray him to make the path light, and 
your way confiding and joyful, until you shall reach that 
home prepared for the faithful." 



In a letter to his sister, dated Oct. 25, he further 
alludes to his mother, as follows : — 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 93 

" My thoughts this morning have been much engaged 
with my early home. I conclude it best to embody them in 
part, and send them forward to add (if they may) a token of 
gratitude and thankfulness to that dear one who is left to us, 
for her care of our early days, and her Christian instruction 
and example to her children, grand-children, and great- 
grand-children ; each generation of whom, I trust, will be 
made better in some of its members by her. It is more 
natural, when in om' weakness and want, to turn our thoughts 
to those whom they have been accustomed to look to for 
assistance ; and thus to me the impression of the blessing I 
enjoy in having such a home as mine is, and the blessing 
I early enjoyed of having such a home as mine was under 
my father's roof, say to my heart : All these increase thy 
responsibilities, and for their use you must account. I have 
had one of my slight ill turns within the two last days, that 
has brought back all these feelings with increased force ; and 
I look upon these as gentle monitors, calculated to make me 
estimate more fully my blessings and my duties. Fre- 
quently, as I am admonished by the frail teniire by which I 
hold my life, I am negligent and careless in the performance 
of those high and every-day duties which I should never 
lose sight of for an hour. I have also such buoyancy of spi- 
rits, that life seems to me a very, very great blessing, and I 
do at times strive to make it useful to those around me." 



94 



CHAPTER. XV 



REFLECTIONS. — YISIT TO WASHIXGTOX. — VISIT TO K-VIXS- 
FOKD ISLAND. — EEFLECTIONS. — VIEWS OF DEATH. — 
REFLECTIOXS. 



From memoraiidiini-book of property, December 31, 
1835: — 

" My expenses have been thousand dollars this year ; 

of which about one-half went for persons and objects that 
make me feel that it has been well expended, and is better 
used than to remain in my possession. God grant that I 
may have the disposition to use these talents in such man- 
ner as to receive at last the joyful sound of ' Well done ! ' " 

On March 29, lS3(i, Mr. Lawrence writes : — 

"My anxiety for a day or two about little things kept me 
from the enjoyment of those bright scenes that are so com- 
mon to me when not oppressed by any of these may be 
events. My nerves are in such a shattered state, that I am 
quite unfit to encounter the responsibilities incident to my 
station, and I am ashamed of myself thus to expose my weak- 
. ness." 

During the spring, Mr. Lawrence's health was so 
feeble, and his nervous system so shattered, that a 



DIARY AND CORRESrONDENCE. 95 

journey was recommended ; and in the month of May, 
in company with his friend and pastor, the Rev. Dr. 
Lothrop, he paid a visit to his brother Abbott, at 
Washington, then the Representative in Congress for 
Boston. During this journey, he experienced a severe 
illness, and was shortly joined by Mrs. Lawrence. 
The Aasit to Washington extended through several 
weeks ; and, although his health remained feeble and 
tlie weather unfavorable, he seems to have been alive 
to objects around him, and interested in what was 
gomg forward in the halls of Congress as well as in 
the society of the capital. He speaks of visits to the 
houses of Congress, and pleasant rides on horseback, 
" with hosts of agreeable companions ready to sally 
forth when the weather shall permit." He also takes 
a survey of the general state of society in Washington, 
Avith an occasional allusion to some particular person- 
age. He writes : — 

" It used to be said that Washington and the Springs were 
the places for matrimonial speculations. I feel a natiu'al 
dislike to a lady being brought out as an extraordinary affair, 
having all perfections, and having refused forty-nine offers, 
and still being on the carpet. It shows that she is either 
very silly herself, or has very silly friends, or both. Good 
strong common sense is worth more than forty-nine offers, 
with any quantity of slaves or bank-notes or lands, with- 
out it. 

"I have passed two hours in the Representatives' Hall 
and Senate Chamber to-day. I heaid the usual spai'ring, and 
confess myself greatly interested in it. I could leai'u uotliiug 



96 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

of the merits of any of the questions ; but I had a preference, 
such as one feels In seeing two dogs fight, that one should 
beat. It was very agreeable to me to see and hear those 
Yarious distinguished characters, and goes to demonstrate the 
common saying, that some objects appear- smaller by our get- 
ting nearer to them." 

During this absence, one of his family remaining at 
home had experienced a light attack of varioloid ; and, 
according to the law then in force, was obliged to be 
transported to the hospital on Rainsford Island, 
situated in Boston Harbor. Soon after Mi\ Law- 
rence's return from the South, he paid a ^isit to Rains- 
foixi Island, on the invitation of Dr. J. V. C. Smith, 
then Quarantine Physician, and there passed some 
weeks very pleasantly, riding about the island on his 
horse, and watching, from the shores, the sea-^iews, 
which, with the passing ships, here afford an endless 
variety. 

In August, he returned to his own house in Bos- 
ton; and, on the '21st, writes to his sister as fol- 
lows : — 

" The scenery, in fi-ont, side, and rear, and all within, is 
umivalled, except by the charms of the dear old home of my 
mother and sister ; in short, it seems to me that no iwo spots 
combine so many charms as my early and present homes ; 
and they impress me more fully now by my being so well as 
to enjoy, not only natm-al scenery, but the social intercourse 
with loved ones, that more than compensates for any thing I 
may have lost by sickness and suffering. I yesterday was 
on horseback nearlv three hours, but did not ride more than 



DIAKY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 97 

ten miles ; and, in that distance, I went over some scenes 
that I felt unwilling to leave, especially some of the old 
works on and near Dorchester Heights ; for they appcai-ed 
more interesting than ever before, from the. circumstance of 
your showing me that mass of original letters fi'om Wasliing- 
ton, Hancock, Samuel Adams, and various other revolution- 
ary characters, to General Wai'd j some of them touching the 
occupation of these heights sixty years ago, and some of 
them alluding to scenes which have scarcely been noticed in 
the published histories of those days. All go to show, how- 
ever, the whole souls of those men to have been engaged in 
their work ; and, further, how vain it is for us of this day, 
who are ambitious of distinction, to found it on any other 
basis than uprightness of character, purity of life, and the 
active performance of all those duties included in ' the doing 
justly, loving mercy, and walking humbly.' How few of 
us remember this ! 1 5iardly know when I have been more 
forcibly impressed with a plain truth than I was yesterday, 
while sitting alone on horseback, on the top of the redoubt 
on Dorchester Heights, and the considerations of the past, the 
present, and the future, were the subject of my thoughts, 
connecting the men of those days with the present, and the 
men of these days with the future. The evidence is irre- 
sistible, that there is a downhill tendency in the chai-acter of 
the people, which, in sixty years more, will make us more 
corrupt than any other enlightened nation so young as ours, 
unless we are checked by adversity and suffering. — But this 
is not what I intended to write about, so I will go to some- 
thing else. The old revolutionary documents, memorials of 
our father, never appeared to me so interesting as now ; and 
those I now return to you will be carefully preserved, and 
such others as you may find, added to them. I would give 
a great sum of money, if by it I could get all the documents 
I used to see when I was a child, and which we thought of 
13 



98 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

SO little value that we did not preserve them with that care 
which should have been used in a famUy which cherishes 
such deep feeling of respect and affection for parents." 

The year 1837 will be remembered as one of great 
pecuniary embarrassment and distress in the commer- 
cial world. Mr. Lawrence alludes to it as follows, on 
May 13 : — 

"The violent pecuniary revulsion that has been antici- 
pated for more than a year has at length overtaken this coun- 
try, and is more severe than our worst fears. In addition to 
the failure of people to pay their debts, in all sections of the 
countiy, for the last two months, the banks, from Baltimore 
to Boston, and probably throughout the Union, as fast as the 
intelUgence spreads, have suspended specie payment, and 
will not probably resume again very Soon." 

On December 17 of the same year, he writes to his 
mother as follows : — 

" This day completes thirty years since my commencing 
business, with the hope of acquiriag no very definite amount 
of property, or having in my mind any anticipation of ever 
enjoying a tithe of that consideration my friends and the 
public are disposed to award me at this time. In looking 
back to that period, and reviewing the events as they come 
along, I can see the good hand of God in all my experience ; 
and acknowledge, with deep humiliation, my want of grati- 
tude and proper retui-n for all his mercies. May each day I 
> live impress me more deeply with a sense of duty, and find 
me better prepared to answer his call, and account for my 
stewardship ! The changes in our family have been perhaps 
no greater than usual in other families in that period, except- 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 99 

ing in the matter of the eminent success that has attended 
our efforts of a worldly nature. This worldly success is the 
great cause of our danger in its uses, and may prove a snare, 
unless we strive to keep constantly in mind, that to whom 
much is given, of him will much be required. I feel my 
own deficiencies, and lament them ; but am encouraged and 
rewarded by the enjoyment, in a high degree, of all my well- 
meant efforts for the good of those around me. In short, I 
feel as though I can still do a little to advance the cause of 
human happiness while I remain here. My maxim is, that 
I ought to ' work while the day lasts ; for the night of death 
will soon overtake me, when I can no more work.' I con- 
tinue to mend in strength, and feel at times the buoyancy of 
early days. It is now raining in torrents, keeping us all 
within doors. I have been at work with gimblet, saw, fore- 
plane, and hammer, thus securing a good share of exercise 
withou.t leaving my chamber." 

" Jan. 1, 1838. — Bless the Lord, my soul ! and forget 
not all his benefits ; for he has restored my life twice during 
the past year, when I was apparently dead, and has permitted 
me to live, and see and enjoy much, and has surrounded me 
with blessings that call for thankfulness. The possession of 
my mind, the intercourse with beloved friends, the opportu- 
nity of performing some labor as his steward (although im- 
perfectly done), all call upon me for thanksgiving and praise. 
The violent revulsion in the business of the country during 
the past year has been ruinous to many ; but, so far as my 
own interests are concerned, has been less than I anticipated. 
My property remains much as it was a year ago. Something 
beyond my income has been disposed of; and I have no 
debts against me, either as a partner in the firm or indivi- 
dually. Every thing is in a better form for settlement than 
at any former period, and I hope to feel ready to depart 



100 DIARY AND CORRESl'ONDENCK. 

whenever called. The amount appropriated to other objects 
than my family expenses, since January, 1829, when I com- 
menced keeping an account, say for nine years, has been 

$ . This pai't of my investment gives me more real 

comfort, at this time, than any other I have made." 

In transmitting to his sister a letter received from 
Baltimore, fi-om a mutual friend, he writes, on March 
12, in a postscript : — 

" This morning seems almost like a foretaste of heaven. 
The sun shines bright, the air is soft : I am comfortable, and 
expect a pleasant drive in the neighborhood. It is indeed 
brilliant, beautiful, and interesting to me, beyond any former 
experience of my life. I am the happiest man alive, and yet 
would wilKngly exchange worlds this day, if it be the good 
pleasure of our best Friend and Father in heaven." 

The extract quoted above will give an idea of that 
state of mind in vi^hich Mr. Lawrence was often foimd 
by his fripnds, and which he imceasingly strove to 
cultivate. He could not always exult in the same 
buoyant and almost rapturous feelings here expressed ; 
for, with his feeble frame and extreme susceptibility 
to' outward influences, to believe such was' the case 
wovdd be to suppose him more than mortal. The 
willingness to exchange worlds was, however, a con- 
stant frame of mind ; and the daily probability of 
such an event he always kept in view. The work 
of each day was performed with the feeling that it 
might be his last ; and there is, tlu-oughout his cor- 
respondence and diary, frequent allusion to the 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 101 

uncertain tenure by which he held life, and his deter- 
mination to work while the day lasted. If a matter 
was to be attended to, of great or little import^ 
ance, whether the founding a professorship, signing a 
will, or paying a household bill, all was attended to 
at the earliest moment, with the habitual remark, " I 
may not be^ere to-morrow to do it." 

In the same cheerful spirit, he writes to his son a 
few days after his marriage, and then on a journey to 
Virginia ; — 

" The whole scene here on Thursday last was so delight- 
ful that I hardly knew whether I was on the earth, of floating 
between earth and heaven. I have been exalted ever since, 
and the group of happy friends will be a sunny spot in yours 
no less than in their remembrance." 

To his sister he writes, Dec. 22 : — 

" It is thirty-one years this week since I commenced 
business on my own account, and the prospects were as 
gloomy at that period for its successful pursuit as at any time 
since ; but I never had any doubt or misgivings as to my 
success, for I then had no more wants than my means would 
justify. The habits then formed, and since confirmed and 
strengthened by use, have been the foundation of my good 
name, good fortune, and present happy condition. At that 
time (when you know I used to visit you as often as I could, 
by riding in the night until I sometimes encroached upon 
the earliest hour of the sabbath before reaching my beloved 
home, to be at my business at the dawn of day on Monday 
morning), my gains were more than my expenses ; thus 
strengthening and encouraging me in the steady pursuit of 



102 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

those objects I had in view as a beginner. From that time 
to this, I am not aware of ever desiring or acquiring any 
great amount by a single operation, or of taking any part of 
the property of any other man and mingling with my own, 
where I had the legal right to do so. I have had such uni- 
form success as to make my fidelity a matter of deep concern 
to myseK; and my prayer to God is, that I may be found to 
hare acted a uniform part, and receive the joyfuk' TN'ell done,' 
which is substantial wealth, that no man can take away. If 
my experience could be made available by my successors, I 
sometimes feel that it would be a guaranty that they would 
keep in the best path ; but, as they are to be fitted by disci- 
pline for the journey, it is perhaps a vain thing for me to 
allow any doubts to rest upon my mind that that discipline 
is not for their highest good. The pleasxires of memory 
have never been more highly enjoyed than during the period 
of my last sickness. They have solaced my pains, and sup- 
ported me through numerous fainting fits, growing out of the 
surgical treatment I have passed. I would ask you, my dear 
sister, if a merciful Parent has not stretched forth his hand 
almost visibly to support me through this trying scene, by 
scattering in my path these flowers and fruits so freely as 
almost to make me forget bodily pains ; and bless him for 
what is past, and trust that what is future will be the means 
of making me a better man." 

" Dec. 31, 1838. — The business of the year now brought 
to a close has been unexpectedly productive, and the prospects 
of continued success are very flattering. At the commence- 
ment of the year, my life seemed a flickering light, with 
' small hope of its continuance through the winter ; but a 
merciful Providence has permitted a brighter view, and my 
happiness through the year has been superior to any year of 
my life." 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 103 

After enumerating some domestic events which had 
contributed to this result, he adds : — 

" My own health is so far restored as to allow me the 
enjoyment of every thing around me in perfection. May 
God in mercy keep me mindful of my duties, and prepared 
to surrender my account at any moment he may call me 
hence ! " 



104 



CHAPTER XVI. 



BROTHER'S DEATH. — LETTERS. — GIFTS. — LETTERS. — 
DLA.RY. — APPLICANTS FOR AID. — REFLECTIONS. — LET- 
TER FROM REV. DR. STONE. — DIARY. 



If, at the close of the last year, "Mr. Lawrence could 
say that " his happiness had been superior to that of 
any j'ear of his life," it could not be said that its 
successor was one of unmingled brightness. The 
unbroken band of brothers who had marched thus far 
hand in hand, united by a common bond of sympathy 
and affection, sustaining each other in all trials, and 
rejoicing together in their common prosperity, was 
about to be sundered. Since their earliest days, they 
had had but one interest, and, residing near each 
other after leaving their early home, had been in the 
habit of most constant and intimate intercourse. 
Many of the family wUl well remember seeing four, 
and sometimes five, of them, on Sunday evening, after 
sernce, walking together abreast, arm in arm ; and 
have been tempted to exclaim, " Behold how good 
and pleasant a thing it is for brethren to dwell 
together in unity ! " They had more than obeyed 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 105 

their father's injunction " not to fall out by the way, 
for a threefold cord is not quickly broken." With 
them, it had been a fivefold cord ; and, amidst all the 
perplexities of business, the management of momen- 
tous interests, and the various vicissitudes of domestic 
life, no strand had parted until severed by the ruth- 
less hand of death. The eldest brother, Luther, had 
been educated at Harvard College ; had studied law 
with the Hon. Timothy Bigelow, then of Groton, 
afterwards of Medford, whose sister he subsequently 
married ; and commenced the practice of his profes- 
sion in his native town. There he met with good 
success, and, for many years, represented the town in 
the House of Representatives, of which he was chosen 
Speaker for the session of 1821 and 1822. He was 
induced by his brothers, who had become largely 
interested in the new town of Lowell, to remove 
thither ; and he accordingly took up his residence 
there in 1831, having accepted the presidency of the 
bank which had been lately established. In 1838, he 
had been elected Mayor of the city, and had given 
himself up to the pressing duties incident to the office 
in a new and growing community. While holding 
this office, he, on the 17th of April, 1839, accompa- 
nied an old friend and connection, who was on a visit 
at Lowell, to inspect the works of the Middlesex 
Manufacturing Company, recently erected by his 
brothers. In passing rapidly through one of the 
rooms, he made a misstep, and was precipitated 



106 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

many feet into a wheel-pit, causing almost instant 
death. This sad event was deeply felt by Mr. Law- 
rence, as well as by all who knew and appreciated 
the character of the deceased. In a letter to his 
sisters, dated April 22, he says : — 

" I should have addressed a word of comfort to you 
before this. That he should be taken, and I left, is beyond 
my ken, and is a mystery ■wlilch will be cleared up hereafter. 
I do, however, know now that all is right, and better ordered 
than we could have done it. "We must submit, and should be 
resigned. Brother Luther's death may, perhaps, be more 
efficient in instructing us in the path of duty than would 
have been his life ; and the whole community around is 
admonished by this event in a way that I have rarely seen 
so marked. The homage to his character is a legacy to liis 
children of more value than all the gold of the mint. Shall 
we, then, repine at his separation from us ? Surely not. He 
has fulfilled his mission, and is taken home, with all his 
powers fresh and perfect, and with the character of having 
used these powers for the best and highest good of all 
around him. We shall all soon be called away, and should 
make his departure the signal to be also ready. This is the 
anniversary of my birth, and has been marked by many 
circumstances of pecuUar interest." 

On the same date, he writes to a connection, who 
was about to take possession of his house on that day 
, for the first time after his marriage : — 

" I intended speaking a word in your ear before your 
leaving us for your own fireside and home, but have con- 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 107 

eluded to take this mode of doing it ; and it is to say, that 
you possess a jewel in your wife, above price, which should 
be worn in such an atmosphere as will increase its purity 
and value the longer you possess it ; and that is around the 
family altar. That you intend to establish it, I have no 
doubt ; but, as to the precise time, you may not be fixed. 
What time so good as the present time, when the first 
evening of possession of this paradise on earth (a house and 
home of your own with such a wife), to make that offering 
to the Father of mercies which ascends to his throne as 
sweet incense from his children ? It is the nutriment and 
efiicient producing power of the best principles and the best 
fruits of our nature. Be wise in time, and strive to secure 
these, that you may go on from one degree to another, until 
you shall have reached our Father's house, and shall hear 
the cheering ' "Well done ! ' promised to such as have used 
their talents without abusing them. My blessing attend 
you ! " 

On June 4, in a letter to his sisters, he writes : — 

" R. leaves us this morning, on his way to the old home- 
stead, which, to my mind's eye, has all the charms of the 
most lovely associations of early days, with all the real 
beauty of those splendid descriptions given by the prophets 
of the holy city. I would earnestly impress all my children 
with a deep sense of the beauty and benefit of cherishing 
and cultivating a respect and affection for this dear spot, and 
for those more dear objects that have served to make it what 
it really is to all us children." 

In a letter to his son, vphose visit is alluded to 
ahove, he says : — 

" The beautiful scenery from Gibbet Hill in Groton, and 
from the road from our old mansion south for a mile, towards 



108 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

the Wachusett and the Monadnock ^lountains, come next, in 
point of beauty, to my taste, to these views ai-ound the 
Boston Common. Be careful to do all things as you will 
wish you had done, that you may look back upon this visit 
with pleasure, and forward to another visit with increased 
relish. Remember that in the best performance of all your 
duties lies the highest enjoyment of all your pleasures. 
Those pleasui-es that flow from plans and doings that your 
conscience condemns are to be shunned as the net of the 
wicked one. ^^Haen once entangled, the desire and eflTort to 
be released grow weaker, till, at length, conscience is put 
asleep, and the sleep of death comes over the soul. Be 
careful, therefore, to avoid evil, and not only so, but to 
avoid all appeai'ance of evil. In this way, you will grow 
up with principles and habits fixed, that will secure you 
against the ills of life, and supply a foretaste of the enjoy- 
ments of a better life to come." 

Mr. Lawrence always took great delight in sending 
to friends and relatives, little and great, mementoes of 
his affectioH ; and a great deal of time was spent in 
penning and reading the letters and notes which such 
transactions called forth. He had a rare faculty of 
adapting his gift to the peculiar necessities or taste 
of the recipient ; and, whether the matter treated of 
was a check for thousands or a bouquet of flowers, 
equal pleasure seemed to be given and received. Ac- 
companying a gift of the fonner description, he notices 
fhe commencement of the year 1840 as follows : — 

"Jan. 1. 
" Dear S., — W. will prize the enclosed more highly from 
your hand ; for he will have proof that a good wife brings 



,.ll fl 




In the scenes 



of Eng- 



and Scotland, than I have set 

.:,., . I- n later dat/>. ^'^ '■"•' 

lias not ^ 



DIAKY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 109 

many blessings, that he never would know the value of but 
for you. May you experience many returns of the ' new 
year,' and each more happy than the past ! " 

In a letter to his second son, then on a visit to 
Europe, he writes, under date of March 5, 1840 : — 

" We are all curious to know what impressions your visit 
to France and Italy produce, and still more what impressions 
a careful overlooking of our fatherland makes upon you. 
There is much food for reflection, and abundant material 
for the exercise of your powers of observation, in every 
league of the ' /as^-anchored isle,' especially in the scenes 
so beautifully portrayed in many of the books we have 
access to. In fact, I have an extensive collection of materials 
to renew your travels and observations, and shall value them 
more highly when you point out this or that seat or castle or 
abbey which has arrested your notice. But the best scenes 
will be those in which the living souls of the present day 
are engaged. The habits and tastes of the people of Eng- 
land have doubtless much changed since the ' Spectator ' 
days ; but, in many important particulars, I should hope 
they had not. Some tliirty years ago, I had a good specimen 
of the feelings and principles of a great variety of people, 
embracing almost all classes, from the year 1774 to 1776, in 
a multitude of letters that had accumulated in the post-ofSce 
in this town, under old Mr. Tuttle Hubbai-d. After his 
death, his house was pulled down ; and, among the strange 
things found in it, were bushels of letters, of which I was 
permitted to take what I pleased. These letters showed a 
deeper religious feeling in the writers of those days, from 
England, Ireland, and Scotland, than I have seen in any 
miscellaneous collections of a later date. If that deep-toned 
piety which pervaded them has not been extinguished by 



lid DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

the Jacobinism and freethinking of later days, happy for the 
people and the government ! But I fear it has, in some 
great measure, been blotted out or obscured, as there seems 
to be a spirit of reckless adventure in politics and religion 
not contemplated seventy years ago. How far our experi- 
ence in self-government in this country is going to advance 
the cause of good government, and the ultimate happiness 
of man, is yet a problem. Our principles are of the most 
elevating character ; our practices under them of the most 
debasing ; and, if we continue in this way another genera- 
tion, there will not be virtue enough in active use to save 
the forms of our government. "We may hope that a better 
heart may be given us." 

On the anniversary of his commencing his business, 
Dec. 17, Mr. Lawrence, as usual, reviews his past life 
and mercies, and adds : — 

" My daily aspirations are for wisdom and integrity to do 
what is required of me ; but the intimation of excuses for 
omissions, and the hidden promptings of pride or selfishness 
in the sins of commission, take away all confidence that all 
is done as it should be. I am in the enjoyment of as much 
as belongs to our condition here. Wife, children, and friends, 
those thi'ee little blessings that were spared to us atter the 
fall, impart enjoyments that make my home as near a heaven 
on earth as is allowed to mortals. 

" Dec. 23. — This morning has been clear and beautiful, 
and I have enjoyed it highly. Have been sleigh-riding with 
Chancellor Kent. Went over to Bunker Hill ^lonument, 
«and around by the river-side to Charlestown Neck, and had 
a regular old-fasliioned talk with him. He gave me an 
account of the scenes which occurred where he was studying, 
in Connecticut, when the news came of the Lexington fight. 



DIARY AND CORKESrONDENCE. Ill 

As we pai'ted, ho promised to come again in the spring, take 
another ride, and resume the conversation. He leayes for 
New York at three o'clock, and is as bright and lively as a 
boy, though eighty-five yeai's old. The old gentleman 
attends to all his own afl'airs, had walked around the city this 
morning some miles, been to the Providence Raiboad Depot 
for his ticket, overlooked divers bookstores, and so forth. 
He is very interesting, and lias all the simplicity of a 
child." 

About tliis time also, Mr. Lawrence seems to have 
had pl^asaut intercourse with the Chevalier Hules- 
mann, the Austrian Minister, so well known by his 
correspondence with Mr. Webster when the latter 
was Secretary of State. The Minister was on a visit 
to Boston, and, from the correspondence which en- 
sued, seems to have conceived a high regard for 
Mr. Lawrence, expressed in very kind and courteous 
terms ; and this regard seems to have been fully 
reciprocated. 

" April 1, 1841. — S. N., of T., an apprentice on board 
the United States ship ' Columbus,' in this hai-bor, thirteen 
years old, whom I picked up intoxicated in Beacon Street a 
month ago, and to whom I gave some books, with request to 
call and see me when on shore, came to-day, and appeal's very 
well. Gave him a Testament and some good counsel. 

" June 6. — G. M. called to sell a lot of sermons called 

the , wliich he said he caused to be published to do 

good : he repeated it so often that I doubted him. He seems 
to me a wooden-nutmeg fellow, although he has the Rev. Mr. 
's certificate." 



112 DIARY AND CORKESPONDENCE. 

The preceding entry is given here merely as a sam- 
ple of many such which are scattered over Mr. Law- 
rence's diary. Few who have not had the like 
experience can estimate the annoyance to which his 
reputation for benevolence and well-doing subjected 
him, in the shape of applications for aid in every ima- 
ginable form. His perceptions were naturally acute ; 
and a long experience and intercourse with men 
enabled him to form, at a single glance, a pretty fair 
estimate of the merits of the applicant. He may 
sometimes have judged precipitately, and perhaps 
harshly ; but, when he discovered that he had done so, 
no one could have been more ready to confess his fault 
and make reparation. A few years after this time, the 
annoyance became so serious, from the number and 
character of the applicants, that he felt obliged, on 
account of ill-health, to deny himself to all, unless 
personally known to him, or accredited by some one 
in whose statement he had confidence. Further than 
this, he was confirmed in his decision by actual abuse 
which had occasionally been administered to him by 
disappointed candidates for charitable aid. He kept 
upon his table a small memorandum-book, in which 
he recorded the names of those who sought aid, 
with their business, and often their age, the age and 
number of theii- children, sometimes facts in their 
"past history, and any other information which could 
enable him to fonn an opinion of their claim upon 
him for assistance. He sometimes indulges also in 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 113 

somewhat quaint remarks respecting those who apply, 
or the manner in which they have presented their 
application. 

To the Rev. Robert Turnbull, a Baptist clergyman 
then settled in Boston, and who had sent to Mr. Law- 
rence a copy of his work entitled " Christ in History," 
he writes under date of Nov. 2 : — 

" Rev. and dear Sir, — I thank you for the little volume 
so kindly presented, and deem it the duty of all the friends 
of the Saviour to do what they can to stop the flood of infi- 
delity and atheism that threatens such waste and devastation 
among us. However we may seem to be, I trust many may 
be found, in the ranks of my Unitarian friends, who admit 
the " claims of Jesus " in their most elevated character, and 
who repudiate the doctrine of those who sink him to the 
level of a mere human teacher, as subversive of his authority 
and as nullifying his teachings. We take the record, and 
what is clearly declared ; we do not go behind, even though 
we do not clearly comprehend it. It gives me pleasure to 
learn you are so well recovered from the injury you received 
from the overturn of your carriage near my house. 

" With great respect, believe me truly yours, A. L." 

" January, 1842. — This yeai' opens with renewed calls 
upon me to bless God for his mercies throughout its course. 
My family circle has not been broken by the death of any 
one of our whole number, and my own health has been bet- 
ter for the last half-year than for five years before. , I have 
not had occasion to call a physician through the year. My 
brothers A. and W. have been dangerously sick, but are hap- 
pily recovered ; and both feel, I believe, that their hold on 
life Is not as firm as they have felt it to be in former yearg. 
16 



114 DIARY AXD CORRESPONUENCE. 

My dear children are growing up around me to bless and 
comfort me ; and all I need is a right understanding of my 
duties, and a sincere purpose to fulfil them. The whole 
amount of appropriations for objects other than for my own 
family, for thii-teen years, ending with the year 1841, is 
something more than one hundred and fourteen thousand 
dollars. I hope to have the will and the means to continue 
them in as faithful a manner as heretofore, to say the least." 

Among the traits in Mr. Lawrence's character was 
that enlarged spirit of Christian feeling which enabled 
him to appreciate goodness in others, without refer- 
ence to sect or denomination. This spirit of universal 
brotherhood was not in him a matter of mere theory, 
but was carried out in the practice of daily life, and 
was the means of cementing many and lasting friend- 
ships, especially among the clergy of various denomi- 
nations around him. It may not be uninteresting in 
future years, for those now in childhood, for whom 
this volume has been prepared, to be reminded of the 
strong feeling of sympathy and affection which their 
grandfather entertained for the Rev. John S. Stone, 
D.D., once the Eector of St. Paul's Church, in Boston, 
and now the Eector of St. John's, in Brookline, Mass. 
The following is an extract from a letter written by 
that gentleman fi-om Brooklyn, N.Y., during the year 
1842, with a memorandum endorsed by Mr. Lawrence, 
dated October, 1 847, in which he says : — 

" This letter was very interesting to me when received. I 
kept it in my pocket-book with one from Judge Story, which 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 115 

he had requested me to keep for my children. While son 
W. was in Europe, I did not expect to live but a short 
time, and sent him the two letters, as the proper person to 
keep them for the use of his children." 

The letter commences by strong expressions of 
affection and regard, over which Mr. Lawrence's 
modesty had induced him to paste a slip of paper, 
endorsed as follows : " Personal matters between the 
writer and myself, covered up here, and not to be read 
by any of the friends to whom I may show this letter." 
The letter continues as follows : — 

" Shall I ever forget the happy moments, hours, days, I 
may say weeks, which I have spent in riding with you, and 
chatting, as we rode, of all things as we passed them, till I 
seemed to myself to be living in the by-gone days of Boston 
and its neighborhood ; and all its old families, houses, names, 
and anecdotes became as familiar to my mind as the stories 
of my boyhood ? Can I forget it all ? I trow not. These 
things are all blended in with the beautiful scenery through 
which we used to ride, and associated with those graver 
lessons and reflections which you used to give me ; insomuch 
that the picture which my memory retains of nature, society, 
history, and feeling, truth, friendship, and religion, and in 
which Boston and the living friends there are comprehended, 
has become imperishable. It never can fade out of my mind. 
It is a picture in which man has done much, friendship more, 
religion most, and God all ; for religion is his, and friend- 
ship is from him, and man is his creature, and the green 
earth and glorious heavens are his homes. There are many, 
very many objects in this picture which I contemplate with 
special delight, and few which give me pain, or which I would 



116 DIAKY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

not have had there, had the whole ordering of its composition 
been left to me. Indeed, had this whole ordering been left 
to me, it may well be doubted, whether, as a whole, it would 
have contained half of the beautiful and blessed things which 
it now contains. Taking it as it is, therefore, I am well con- 
tent to receive it, hang it up in the choicest apartment of my 
memory, and keep it clean and in good order for use." . . . 

As an illustration of the pleasant intercourse al- 
luded to above, among Mr. Lawrence's papers is found 
another most friendly letter from the Rev. Henry 
"Ware, jun., dated a few days afterwards, with the 
following endorsement : — 

" I went on Friday to Mr. Ware's house, and had a free, 
full, and deeply interesting conversation upon the appoint- 
ment of his successor, and was delighted to find him with 
the same views I have upon the necessity of removing the 
theological department from Cambridge." 

Dec. 2, Mr. Lawrence alludes to the probability of 
his own death taking place in the manner in which it 
actually occurred ten years afterwards, as follows : — 

" Yesterday I was very well, and have been so for some 
time past. Experienced a severe ill turn this morning at 
five o'clock, more so than for years. This check brings me 
back to the reflection, that, when I feel the best, I am most 
likely to experience one of my ill turns ; some one of which 
will probably end my journey in this life. God grant me 
due preparation for the next ! " 



117 



CHAPTEK XVII. 



REFLECTIONS. — LETTERS. — ACCOUNT OF EFFORTS TO COM- 
PLETE BUNKER-HILL MONUMENT. 



In the memorandum-book of property for 1843 is 
found the usual estimate and list of expenditures ; 
after which he writes as follows : — 

" My outlay for other objects than my own family, for 
the last fourteen years, has been rather more than one hun- 
di'ed and twenty-three thousand dollars, which sum I esteem 
better invested than if in bond and mortgage in the city j 
and I have reason to believe many have been comforted and 
assisted by it, and its influence will be good on those 
who follow me. God grant me grace to be faithful to my 
trust ! " 

,To Hon. R C. Winthrop, M. C, Washington, en- 
closing a letter from a young colored man : — 

" Boston, Feb. 15, 1843. 
" Dear Sir, — This young man, as you will observe by 
his style, is well educated ; and the circumstances he states, 
I have no doubt, are true. He applied to me, about two 
years since, for employment in writing or other business, to 
obtain means for further education ; and I interested myself 



118 DIARY AXD CORBESPOXDEXCE. 

to secure to him what ■was required. A few months since, 
he started from here to go to Jamaica, to commence the 
practice of law, and was supplied by those who had taken 
an interest in him with a library suited to his wants. He 
received his early education in Indiana ; and his parents 
were once slaves. He is a handsome colored fellow, better- 
mannered, better-looking, and more to be respected, than 
many young gentlemen who move in the higher walks of 
life, either in Carolina or Massachusetts. Now, 1 should 
like to know, if he should be admitted as an attorney to 
practice in our courts, and should take passage for Jamaica, 
and put into Charleston, would he be imprisoned, as is now 
the practice in regard to our black sailors ? I feel a much 
stronger desire to see your report upon this subject of 
imprisoning our colored people, after the unfair course 
taken by the majority of your house to smother it ; and I 
hope still to see it in print before the adjournment. I 
would fuither remai-k, that N. T. is a member of Grace 
Church in this city I believe, under the care of Rev. T. M. 
Clarke ; and would, doubtless, bear affliction, if it should 
ever be his fortune to be afflicted by being imprisoned 
because his skin is dark, with a spirit becoming his profes- 
sion. With great respect and esteem, believe me very truly 
yours, Amos La'w'rence." 

To HIS SiSTEE. 

" Boston, April 19, 1S13. 
" Dear Sister M., — When I heard a gun this morning, 
I was immediately transported back in imagination to the 
19th of April, '75, when our grandmother retreated from 
her house on the roadside in Concord, with her family, to 
keep out of the way of the ' regulars ; ' and that day and 
its scenes, as described, came back upon me with a force 
which kept me awake in considering whether the gun was 



DIARY AND CORKESPONDEXCE. 119 

fired to recall the tacts to the people of this day ; and, if 
recalled, whether we can profit by the events which followed. 
I found, however, on receiving my newspapers, that the gun 
■was not for commemoration of Lexington and Concord, but 
to announce the arrival of the British steamer from Liver- 
pool. The news by this steamer is of no more than common 
interest ; and the intercourse is now so easy and rapid, that 
the interest felt to learn what is passing in Europe is not 
much greater than we used to feel on Call's stage-coach 
arriving at Groton from Boston once a week, fifty years ago. 
The changes within my own recollection are such as almost 
to make me distrust my own senses ; and many of the 
changes are at the cost of much good. The down-hill 
tendency in the standard of character is a bad sign, and 
threatens the prostration of our political fabric. Built as it 
is on the virtue and intelligence of the people, every waste 
of these endangers the stability of the whole structure." 

" April 24. — I resume, though not in the same train of 
thought, which is slept off. My birthday has passed since 
then ; and I am now in my fifty-eighth year. This is the 
birthday of oui- fother, who would have been eighty-nine if 
living ; and this week on Saturday will also complete thirty- 
six years since I left home to spend a few months in this 
city, preparatory to my commencing business in Groton. 
Here I have continued ; and the consequences to our family 
seem to have stamped upon us such marks as make us 
objects of influence, for good or evil, to a much greater 
extent than if I had returned to commence my business 
career in my native town. I ■\'iew in this a Hand pointing 
upward, — ' Seek me, and ye shall find,' — and a caution to 
us to use without abusing the good things entrusted to us. 
How hard it is for those in prosperity to bring home to their 
feelings their dependence, theii- abuse of their privileges, 
their desires for objects wholly disproportionate to their 



120 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

value, their anxiety about trifles while they are so utterly 
careless and indifierent about those of the highest moment ! 
How we strive unceasingly to secure objects that can, at 
best, give us but a slight reward, and in many cases, if 
attained to the full extent of our hopes, only serve to 
sharpen our appetite for more ; thus demonstrating the bene- 
volence of our heavenly Father in removing these obstacles 
to our progress in the ways and works of godliness ! How 
important, then, for us to see a Father's hand in the disap- 
pointments, not less than in the success, of our plans ! I 
now speak practically of those anxieties which I feel and 
condemn myself for, in looking forward to the condition of 
my family. This is all wrong ; and I pray God to pardon 
me the want of faith this feeling implies. 

" I have thought much of your account of Mrs. N. going 
out, on the sabbath after her husband's death, with her nine 
children. I remember her, and many others of my youthful 
schoolmates, with interest and regard. Please say so to her. 
And now, dear M., as the clouds seem thinner, I may hope 
to secure a little run, and shall take the post-ofEce in my 
way; so musj; bid you adieu." 

To General . 

" May 5, 1843. 

" My dear old General, — Our anticipated drive to-day is 

not to be : the weather settles it that I must keep house ; 

and, to indemnify myself for the disappointment, will you 

allow me to feel that I have not gone too far in requesting 

you to receive the enclosed check ? I am spared here for 

some object, and do not feel that to hoard money is that 

object. While I am in the receipt of an Income so ample, I 

find it sometimes troublesome to invest exactly to my mind. 

In the present case, the hope that you may, by using this, 

add something to your enjoyment, makes me feel that it is 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 121 

one of my best investments ; and for the reason that your 
proverbial good-will cannot refuse me such a boon, I have 
made this request. My heart yearns strongly toward the 
old-fashioned John Jay school in politics and morals ; and, 
when I have an opportunity to minister in any way to one of 
the early members, it is a pleasure that sweetens my days as 
they pass." 

On the letter written in reply to the above, Mr. 
Lawrence has endorsed : — 

*' This letter from old General , now eighty-eight 

years old, and blind, is an acknowledgment of some little 
kindnesses I was enabled to render thi"ough the hand of 
Judge Story. It has afforded me more pleasure than it 
could have done either the Judge or the General. I am sure 
the good old man's feelings were gratified ; and I am thank- 
ful that I could comfort him." 

On the 17th of June, 1843, took place the celebra- 
tion in honor of the completion of the Bunker-Hill 
Monument; an event which was regarded with no 
ordinary emotions by Mr. Lawrence, after so many 
years of effort and expectation. His only regret was, 
that the whole battle-field could not have been pre- 
served, and have remained, to use his own words, " a 
field-preacher for posterity." Eleven years before 
this, he had written to his son in Europe : — 

" If we be true to ourselves, our city is destined to be the 
Athens of America, and the hallowed spots in our neighbor- 
hood to be the objects of interest throughout all future time. 
In this view, I would never permit a foot of the battle-field 
16 



122 DTARY AND CORKESPONDENCE. 

of Bunker Hill to be alienated ; but keep it for your great- 
great-grand-children, as a legacy of patriotism wortli more 
than their portion of it, if covered with gold by measure. 
Until you are older, I do not expect you to feel as I do on 
this subject." 

This would seem to be the proper place to mention 
a few facts in regard to Mr. Lawrence's agency in 
securing the completion of the monument. It has 
already been mentioned that he was one of the earliest 
friends of the project to erect a monument, and, in 
1825, had been placed upon the Standing Committee 
of Directors, with full powers to manage the affairs of 
the Association. In September, 1831, in a letter to 
his friend, Dr. J. C. Warren, who himself had been 
one of the warmest and most efficient advocates of the 
measure, he proposed to subscribe ^5,000, on condi- 
tion that ^50,000 should be raised within one year. 
The following passage occurs in that letter : — 

" I think it inexpedient to allude to the sale of the land 
on Bunker Hill, as a resource for paying the debt, except in 
case of extreme necessity ; and, at this time, I should person- 
ally sooner vote to sell ten acres of the Common, in front of 
my house, to pay the city debt (of Boston), than vote to sell 
the ten acres on Bunker Hill, until it shall appear that our 
citizens "will not contribute the means of sa\'ing it." 

The proposition thus made was not responded to by 
'the public* As early as December, 1830, he had 

* For a history of the Bunker-Hill Monument, see an article in collections of 
" Maine Historical Society," vol. iii., b; Professor Packard, of Bowdoin College. 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 123 

made provision by his will, in case of his own death, 
to secure the battle-field, liquidate the debts of the 
corporation, and complete the monument. These 
provisions were superseded by another will, executed 
April 1, 1833, after his health had failed, so as to for- 
bid active participation in affairs. An extract from 
this document will show tl^e views of the testator : — 

" I am of opinion that the land owned by the Bunker- 
Hill Monument Association, in Charlestown, will be of great 
value to posterity, if left as public ground. The spot is the 
most interesting in the country ; and it seems to me it is cal- 
culated to impress the feelings of those who come after us 
with gratitude to the people of this generation, if we preserve 
it to them. The whole field contains about fifteen acres ; 
and, in the hope of preserving it entire, either as the property 
of the State, of this city, or of any other competent body, and 
with the further view of ensuring the completion of the 
monument, which now stands as a reproach to us, I have set 
apart a larger share of my property than would be necessary, 
had not the subject been presented to the public in such a 
manner as to discourage future attempts at raising the neces- 
sary funds by voluntary contribution." 

The amount thus devised for the monument, in case 
that amount should not be raised in other ways, was 
^50,000. In June, 1832, before the annual meeting 
of the Bunker-Hill Monument Association, the same 
offer of ^5,000, as first named, was renewed, with an 
urgent appeal for the preservation of the land, and 
completion of the monument. A movement followed 
this appeal, but was not successful. In April, 1833, 



184 DIARY AND CORRESPOXDEXCE. 

Mr. Lawrence proposed to the Massachusetts Chari- 
table Mechanic Association to attempt the raising of 
^50,000, to be secured within three months, for com- 
pleting the monument and preser^■ing the field; 
accompanying the proposition was an ofier of $5,000, 
or ten per cent on any less sum that might be raised, 
as a donation to the Association. A public meeting 
was held in Faneuil Hall in response to this proposi- 
tion, at which Hon. Edwaid Everett made a most 
powerful appeal, which produced so great an eftect 
upon his auditors that the object was considered as 
accomplished. . The efibrt was again unsuccessful. 
Early in 1839, Mr. Lawrence addi-essed a letter to 
George Darracott, Esq., President of the Mechanic 
Association, in which, after expressing regret that his 
feeble and precarious health would not permit him to 
make personal application to the citizens of Boston, 
he adds : — 

" The next best thing I can do is to give money. The 
Monument Association owes a debt. To discharge the debt, 
finish the monument, surround it with a handsome iron fence, 
and otherwise ornament the grouud as it deserves, will 
require $40,000 more than it now has. If the Association 
will collect $.30,000 the present year, and pay oft' the debt, I 
will give to the Chai-itable Mechanic Association $10,000 to 
enable it to complete the work in a maimer which our fathers 
would have done, had they been here to direct it." 

A further donation of $10,000 was made by Judah 
Touro, Esq., of Xew Orleans ; $5,000 were received 



DIARY AND CORRESrONDEXCE. 125 

from other sources ; and this, with ^30,000 received 
at the great fair hehl in Quincy Hall, September, 
1840, afforded the means of completing the monument 
according to the origin;!! design. Thus was consum- 
mated a work which had been very near to Mr. 
Lawrence's heart, and which had cost him many a 
sleepless night, as well as days of toil and perplexity. 
To his associates in this work, too much credit can- 
not be awarded ; discouraged, as they often were, by 
indifference and even censure. Their names will be 
handed do\Mi for centuries, in connection \Aith a 
monument, which, while it commemorates a nation's 
freedom, teaches also a practical lesson of the perse- 
verance and energy of man. 

The following is an extract from a newspaper pub- 
lished about the time the monument was completed, 
gi^^ng an account of a festival held in commemoration 
of the event : — 

" The Tresidcnt remarked, that, among the benefactors to 
\rhom the Association had been particularly indebted for 
means of completing the monument, two, whose names were 
written on a scroll at the other end of the hall, were Amos 
Lawrence and Judali Touro, each of whom had made a dona- 
tion of ten thousand dollai's. He thought it proper they 
should be remembered at the festive boai'd, and gave the fol- 
lowing : — 

" Amos and JucUili ! venerated names ! 
Patriarch and prophet press their equal claims ; 
Like generous coursers, running neck and neck. 
Each aids the work by giving it a clicck. 
Christian and Jew, tliey carry out a plan ; 
For, though of diifcrent faith, each is in heart a man." 



126 



CHAPTEE XYIII. 



INTEREST IX MOUNT AITBURN. — REV. DR. SHARP. — LET- 
TER FROM BISHOP McILVAINE. — LETTER FROM JTDGE 
STORY. 



After the establishment of the cemetery at Mount 
Auburn, Mr. Lawrence had taken a deep interest in 
its progress, as well as in every plan for its gradual 
improvement and embellishment. In connection with 
his brothers, he had purchased a large space, which 
had been enclosed by a permanent granite wall and 
iron railing.^ To this spot he habitually resorted, 
containing, as it did, the remains of some of the dear- 
est earthly objects of his affection, and destined as it 
was to be the final resting-place of not only himself, 
but ' of the various branches of his famil}\ "When 
this enclosure had been finished, it became an object 
with him to gather around him in death those whom 
he had loved and honored in life. In this way, he 
had been instrumental in causing to be removed to a 
lot adjoining his own, the remains of the Rev. J. S. 
Buckminster, the former minister of Brattle-street 
Church; and had also presented another lot to his 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 127 

friend and pastor, the Eev. Dr. Lothrop. Another 
friend, whose grave he wished to have near his own, 
was the Rev. Daniel Sharp, D.D., minister of the 
West Baptist Church in Boston. There were few in 
Boston who were not familiar with the appearance of 
this venerable clergyman, as he daily appeared in the 
streets, and fewer still who had not learned to appre- 
ciate the truly catholic and Christian spirit which 
animated him in his intercourse with men of all sects 
and parties. Mr. Lawrence had early entertained a 
great esteem for his character ; and this esteem had 
become mutual, and had ripened into the closest inti- 
macy and friendship. On receiving a deed of a lot at 
Mount Auburn, Dr. Sharp writes as follows : — 

" Boston, Aug. 23, 1843. 
" My dear Sir, — I cannot find words ■with which to ex- 
press my sense of your unexpected and considerate kindness, 
in providing so beautiful a resting-place in Mount Auburn 
for me and my loved ones. It is soothing to me to antici- 
pate that my grave will be so near your own. May the 
Almighty, in his infinite mercy, grant, that, when the trum- 
pet shall sound, and the dead shall awake, we may both rise 
together, to be for ever with the Lord ! If the proximity of 
my last place of repose to ministers of another denomination 
shall teach candor, charity, and peace, I enjoy the sweet con- 
sciousness that this will be in harmony with the object of my 
life. Yours, gratefully, 

"Daniel Sharp. 
" Amos Lawkence, Esa." 

The enlarged Christian spirit which formed so pro- 
minent a trait in Mr. Lawrence's character, and which 



128 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

enabled him to appreciate goodness wherever it could 
be found, without reference to nation, sect, or color, 
may be further illustrated by the following note of 
acknowledgment, received about the same time with 
the preceding, from Bishop Mcllvaine, of the Protest- 
ant Episcopal Church in Ohio, who was then on a 
\isit to Boston to procure funds in aid of Kenyon 
College : — 

" Wednesday evening. 
" My dear Sir, — I have just received your very kind and 
grateful letter, with its cheering enclosure of a hundred dol- 
lars towards an qbject which engrosses me much just now. 
Thank you, dear sir, most truly, for your kindness, and the 
first fruits of Boston, for I came only to-day. I trust the 
ingathering will not dispossess the first ripe sheaf. Coming 
from one not of my own church, it is the more kind and 
grateful. O sir ! if God shall so bless my present efibrt as 
to send me home with the sum 1 seek, I shall know a free- 
dom of mind from care and anxiety such as I have not expe- 
rienced for many years, during which our present crisis has 
been anticipated. I shall have great pleasure in riding with 
you, according to your note to Sir. R. To-morrow will pro- 
bably be a day of more leisure to me than any other while I 
shall be in Boston. 

" Yours, very truly and respectfully, 

" Charles P. McIlvaine." 



To ONE OF HIS Paktners. 
, "Dec. 18, 1843. 

"Dear Mr. Parker, — I am puffed vp (with ague), but 
not in a manner to gratify my pride, as I am housed, and 
denied the sight of most of those who call, but not the pri- 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 129 

vilege of reading their papers, and spending money. In 
short, I have more use for money when in the house than 
when able to be abroad. If you will tell Brother Sharp* his 
beautiful bills find an exceedingly ready use, I shall be glad 
of one hundred in ones and twos, two hundred in fives, and 
three hundred in tens and twenties ; say six hundred dol- 
lars, just to keep me along till the end of the month. The 
calls are frequent and striking. ' Do with thy might what 
thy hand findeth to do ; for the night cometh, when no man 
can work.' God grant me the blessing of being ready to 
answer the call, whether it be at noon or at midnight ! " 

Twelve days after, he writes to the same gentleman 
for another supply; the sum already received not 
having been sufficient apparently to carry him through 
the year : — 

"Dec. 30, 1843. 
" ' The good there is in riches lieth altogether in their 
use, like the woman's box of ointment ; if it be not broken 
and poured out for the refreshment of Jesus Christ, in his 
distressed members, they lose their wealth ; the covetous 
man may therefore truly write upon his rusting heaps, " These 
are good for nothing." He is not rich who lays up much, 
but he who lays out much ; for it is all one not to have, as 
not to use. I will therefore be the richer by a charitable 
laying out, while the worldling will be poorer by his cove- 
tous hoarding up.' Here is the embodiment of a volume, 
and whoever wrote it deserves the thanks of good men. I 
would fain be rich, according as he defines riches ; but pos- 
session, possession, is the devil, as the old Frenchman at 

said to George Cabot. This devil I would try to cast out ; 
you will therefore please send me twelve hundred dollars, 

* For more than fort; years, Teller in Massacbusetta Bank. 
17 



130 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

which may do something for the comfort of those who have 
seen better days. Your friend, A. L. 

"To C. H. Pakker, Esa." 

The following letter from Judge Story was received 
at about the time the preceding letter was written ; 
but no memorandum is found by which to ascertain 
the occasion which called it forth. It may be that he 
had been made the channel, as was the case a few 
months before, of some donation to a third person ; a 
mode which Mr. Lawrence often adopted when he felt 
a delicacy in proffering direct aid to some one whose 
sensitiveness might be wounded in receiving aid from 
a comparative stranger : — 

" Cambridge, Saturday noon. 
" My dear Sir, — I have this moment finished reading 
your letter and its enclosures, which did not reach me until 
this noon, and I can scarcely describe to you how deeply I 
have been affected by them. I almost feel that you are too 
much oppressed by the constant calls for charitable purposes, 
and that your liberal and conscientious spirit is tasked to its 
utmost extent. ' The poor have ye always with you ' is a 
Christian truth ; and I know not, in the whole circle of my 
fi'iends, any one who realizes it so fully, and acts upon it so 
nobly, as yourself. God, my dear sir, will reward you for all 
your goodness : man never can. And yet the gratitude of the 
many whom you relieve, their prayers for your happiness, 
their consciousness of your expanded benevolence, is of 
itself a treasure of inestimable value. It is a source of con- 
solation, which you would not exchange for any earthly 
boon of equal value. Wealth is to you an enlightened 
trust, for the benefit of your race. You administer it 



WARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 131 

SO gracefully, as well as so justly, that I can only regret 
that your means are not ten times as great. Gracious 
Heavens ! What a contrast is your life to that of some 
wealthy men, who have lived many years, and have yet to 
learn how to give, or, as you beautifully expressed it the other 
day, who have yet to learn to be their own executors ! My 
heart is so full of you, and of the whole matter, that I would 
fain pour out my thoughts at large to you ; for you under- 
stand me, and I can sympathize with you. But just now I 
am full of all sorts of business, and without a moment to 
spare, having many judicial opinions to prepare in the 
few remaining days before I go to Washington ; and, 
withal, having Mrs. S. very ill, in respect to whom I feel 
a deep anxiety. But, wherever I am, I pray you to believe 
that you are always in my thoughts, with the warmest affec- 
tion and dearest remembrance. And, if this hasty scrawl is 
not too slight for such a matter, pray preserve it among your 
papers, that your children may know what I thought of their 
father, when you and I shall be both in our graves. 
" I am most truly and faithfully your obliged friend, 

" Joseph Story. 

"Amos Lawrence, Esq." 

" P. S. — I have sent the letter and its accompaniments to 

Mr. . Think of . Think of those rich men in 

— ; — , who have never dreamed of the duties of charity. 
Cast a view to their own posterity. How striking a memento 

is the very case of , presented in his own letters, of the 

instability of human fortune ! " 

Mr. Lawrence closes the year 1843 by a review of 
his temporal affairs, and by fresh resolutions of fide- 
lity to his trusts. He then gives an estimate of his 



132 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

income and expenditures, showing a somewhat large 
excess of the latter, though, as he says, from the state 
of the times, not to the detriment of his property. 

To THE Mechanic Apprentices' Libeary Association. 

" My young Friends, — It cheers and comforts me to learn 
of your well-doing, and encourages me to offer a word of 
counsel, as prosperity is often more dangerous in its time 
than adversity. Now is your seed-time. See to it that it is 
good ; for ' whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap.' 
The integrity, intelligence, and elevated bearing of the Bos- 
ton mechanics has been and is a property for each citizen of 
great value ; inasmuch as the good name of our beloved city 
is a common property, that every citizen has an interest in, 
and should help to preserve. At your time of life, habits are 
formed that grow with your years. Avoid rum and tobacco, 
in all forms, unless prescribed as a medicine ; and I will 
promise you better contracts, heavier purses, happier families, 
and a. more youthful and vigorous old age, by thus avoiding 
the beginning of evil. God speed you, my young friends, 
in all your good works ! With the enclosed, I pray you to 
accept the felicitations of the season. 

" Amos Lawrence." 



133 



CHAPTER XIX. 



ACQUAINTANCE WITH PRESIDENT HOPKINS. — LETTERS. — 
AFFECTION FOR BRATTLE-STREET CHURCH. — DEATH OF 
MRS. APPLETON. — LETTERS. 



At the commencement of the year 1844, President 
Hopkins, of Williams College, delivered a course of 
lectures on the " Evidences of Christianity," before 
the Lowell Institute in Boston. Mr. Lawrence had 
previously seen him, and had thought that he de- 
tected, in some features of his face, a resemblance to 
the family of his first wife. In allusion to this 
acquaintance, he writes to his son about this pe- 
riod : — 

" President H. has the family look of your mother enough 
to, belong to them ; and it was in consequence of that resem- 
blance, when I was first introduced to him many years ago, 
that I inquired his origin, and found him to be of the same 
stock." 

The acquaintance was renewed, and an intimacy 
ensued, which was not only the cause of much happi- 
ness to Mr. Lawrence through the remainder of his 



184 DIARY AXD CORRESPOXUEN'CE. 

life, but was also the means of directing his attention 
to the wants of "Williams College, of which he even- 
tually became the greatest benefactor. An active and 
constant correspondence followed this acquaintance, 
and was so much prized by Mr. Lawrence that he had 
most of the letters copied, thereby filling several 
volumes, from which extracts will from time to time 
be made. In one of his first letters to that gentle- 
man, dated May 11, he says: — 

" If, by the consecration, of my earthly possessions to 
some extent, I can make the Christian chai-acter practically 
more lovely, and illustrate, in my own case, that the higher 
enjoyments here are promoted by the free use of the good 
things entrusted to me, what so good use can I make of 
them ? I feel that my stewardship is a very imperfect one, 
and that the use of these good things might be extended pro- 
fitably to myself; and, since I have known how much good 
the little donation did your college, I feel ashamed of myself 
it had not been larger, at any rate sufficient to have cleared 
the debt." 

To the same gentleman who had informed Mr. 
Lawrence that an accident had befallen a plaster bust 
of himself, he writes, under date of May 16: — 

" Dear President, — You know the phrase * Such a man's 
head is full of notions ' has a meaning that we all understand 
to be not to his credit for discretion, whatever else may be 
said of him. As I propose throwing in a caveat against this 
general meaning, I proceed to state my case. And, firstly. 
President H. is made debtor to the Western Railroad Corpo- 
ration for the transportation of a barrel to Pittsfield. The 



DIARY AND CORRKSPONDENCE. 135 

bill is receipted, so that you can have the barrel to-morrow 
by sending for it ; which barrel contains neither biscuit nor 
flour, but the clay image of your friend. In the head are 
divers notions that my hand fell upon as I was preparing it 
for the jaunt ; and, when the head Avas filled Avith things 
new and old, I was careful to secure the region under the 
shoulders, especially on the left side, and near the heart, 
by placing that part of a lady's dress which designated a 
government that we men arc unwilling openly to acknow- 
ledge, but is, withal, very conservative. Within its folds I 
wrapped up very securely ' Pilgrim's Progress,' and stuffed 
the empty space between my shoulders, and near my heart, 
brim fall. I hope my young friend will find a motive and a 
moral in the image and in tlie book, to cheer him on in his 
pilgrimage of life." 

" July 22, 1844. — Sixty-seven yeai's ago this day, my 
mother, now living, was married ; and, while standing up 
for the ceremony, the alarm-bell rang, calling all soldiers to 
their posts. My flither left her within the hour, and repaired 
to Cambridge ; but the colonel, in consideration of the 
circumstances, allowed him to return to Groton to his wife, 
and to join his regiment within three days at Rhode Island. 
This he did, spending but a few hours with his wife ; and 
she saw nothing more of him until the last day of the year, 
when he made her a visit. I have ordered a thousand 
dollars paid to the Massachusetts General Hospital, to aid in 
enlarging its wings, and to commemorate this event. The 
girls of this day know nothing of the privations and trials 
of their grandmothers." 

On the same clay with the above entry in his diary 
occurs another, in which he alludes to assistance 
afforded to some young persons in Brattle-street 



136 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

Church, — " sons of Brattle Street, and, as such, 
assisted by me." Mr. La-\vrence's early religious 
associations were connected with this church, where, 
it is believed, he attended from the first Sunday after 
his coming to Boston. With such associations, and 
connected as they were with the most endeared recol- 
lections of those who had worshipped there with him 
in early days, all that pertained to this venerable 
church possessed a strong and abiding interest. In 
this connection is quoted the beautiful testimony of 
his pastor, the Rev. Dr. Lothrop, furnished in the 
funeral sermon delivered by him, where he speaks of 
Mr. Lawrence's love for the church, as well as of his 
religious character : — 

" The prominent feature in INIr. Lawrence's life and cha- 
racter, its inspiration and its guide, was religion, — religious 
faith, affection, and hope. He loved God, and therefore 
he loved all God's creatures. He believed in Christ as 
the Messiah and Saviour of the world, and therefore found 
peace and strength in his soul, amid all the perils, duties, 
and sorrows of life. His religious opinions lay distinct and 
clear in his own mind. They were the result of careful 
reading and of serious reflection, and were marked by a 
profound reverence for the Sacred Scriptures, and the divine 
authority of Jesus Christ. A constant worshipper here 
during the forty-six years of his residence in this city, for 
more than forty years of this period a communicant, and 
for more than ten a deacon of this church, — resigning the 
office, at length, because of his invalid state of health, — 
he had strong attachments to this house of God. ' Our 
venerable church,' he says, in one of his notes to me, * has 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 187 

in it deeply impressive, improving, instructive, and inter- 
esting associations, going back to the early days of my 
worshipping there ; and the prayers of my friends and 
fellow-worshippers of three generations, in part now be- 
longing there, come in aid of my weakness in time of need ; 
and no other spot, but that home where I was first taught 
my prayers, and this my domestic fireside, where my chil- 
dren have been taught theirs, has the same interest as our 
own old Brattle-square Church.' " 

Sept. 23, Mr. Lawrence receives from an old debtor, 
once a clerk in his establishment, a check for five 
hundred dollars, which a sense of justice had induced 
him to send, though the debt of some thousands had 
been long since legally discharged. On receiving it, 
he writes, in a memorandum at the bottom of the 
letter received, to his brother and partner : — 

" Dear Abbott, — I have the money. was always 

a person of truth. I take the statement as true ; but I had 
no recollection of the thing till recalled by his statement. 
What say you to putting this money into the life oSice, in 
trust for his sister ? Your affectionate brother, 

"Amos." 

" Memorandum. Nov. 23. — Done, and policy sent to 
the sister." 

There are but few men, distinguished in public or 
private life, who are burdened with an undue amount 
of praise from their cotemporaries ; and yet this 
was the case with Mr. Lawrence, who was often cha- 
grined, after some deed of charity, or some written 



138 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

expression of sympathy, to see it emblazoned, with 
superadded colors, in the public prints. Some one 
had enclosed to him a newspaper from another city, 
which contained a most labored and flattering notice 
of the kind referred to, to which he writes the 
following reply : — 

" Sept. 1, 1844. 

" Dear , — I received the paper last evening, and 

have read and re-read it with deep interest and attention. 
However true it may be, it is not calculated to promote the 
ultimate good of any of us ; for we are all inclined to think 
full well enough of ourselves ; and such puffs should be left 
for our obituaries. Truth is not always to be pushed 
forward ; and its advocates may sometimes retai-d it by 
injudicious urging. Such is the danger in the present case. 
The writer appears to be a young man who has received 
favors, and is laboring to repay them or secure more. He 
has told the truth ; but, as I before said, neither you nor I, 
nor any one of oui- families, are improved or benefited in 
any degree by it. God grant us to be humble, diligent, 
aud faithful -to the end of our journey, that we may then 
receive his approval, and be placed anlong the good of all 
nations and times ! " 

On the 29th of October, Mrs. Appleton, his sister- 
in-law, and ^vidow of the Rev. Jesse Appleton, D. D., 
fonnerly President of Bowdoin College, died at his 
house, after a lingering illness. In a letter to his son, 
after describing her character and peaceful death, he 
' says : — 

"With such a life and such hopes, who can view the 
change as any other than putting away the fugitive and 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 139 

restless pleasures of an hour for the quiet and fixed enjoy- 
ments of eternity ? Let us, then, my dear cliildren, not look 
upon the separation of a few short years as a calamity to be 
dreaded, should we not meet here again in any other way 
than as we now meet. While I am here, every joy and 
enjoyment you experience, and give us an account of, is not 
less so to us than if we were with you to partake, as we have 
done of all such heretofore ; and, in this source of enjoy- 
ment, few people have such ample stores. Three families 
of children and grandchildren within my daily walk, — is 
not this enough for any man ? And here I would impress 
upon my grandsons the importance of looking carefully to 
their steps. The difference between going just right and a 
little wrong in the commencement of the journey of life is 
the difference between their finding a happy home or a 
miserable slough at the end of the journey. Teach them 
to avoid tobacco and intoxicating drink, and all temptations 
that can lead them into evil, as it is easier to prevent than to 
remedy a fault. ' An ounce of prevention is worth a pound 
of cure.' I was going on to say, that, according to my 
estimate of men and things, I would not change conditions 
with Louis Philippe if I could by a wish, rich as he is in 
the matter of good children. I have a great liking for him, 
and a sincere respect for his family, as they are reported to 
me ; but I trust that mine will not be tried by the tempta- 
tions of great worldly grandeur, but that they will be found 
faithful stewards of the talents entrusted to them. Bring up 
your boys to do their work first, and enjoy their play after- 
wards. Begin early to teach them habits of order, a proper 
economy, and exact accountability, in their affairs. This 
simple rule of making a child, after he is twelve years old, 
keep an exact account of all that he wears, uses, or expends, 
in any and every way, would save more suffering to families 
than can fairly be estimated by those who have not observed 



140 DIARY AND CORKESPONDENCE. 

its operations. And now, to change the subject," he writes 
Nov. 15, " we have got through the elections, and are 
humbled as Americans. The questions affecting our local 
labor, produce, and pecuniary interest, are of small moment, 
compared with that of annexing Texas to this Union. I 
wrote a brief note yesterday to our friend Chapman, late 
Mayor of the city, and a member of the Whig Committee, 
which speaks the language of my heart. It was as fol- 
lows : — 

" ' My dear Sir, — The result of the election in Massa- 
chusetts is matter of devout and grateful feelings to every 
good citizen, and, so far as pride is allowable, is a subject of 
pride to every citizen, whatever his politics ; for, wherever 
he goes, and carries the evidence of belonging to the old 
Bay State, he may be sure of the respect of all parties. 
This glorious result has not been wrought "without works ;" 
and for it we, the people, are greatly indebted to your com- 
mittee. So far as may be needed, I trust you will find no 
backwardness on our part in putting matters right. I bless 
God for sparing my life to this time ; and I humbly beseech 
him to crown your labors with success in future. If Texas 
can be kept off, there will be hope for our government. All 
other questions are insignificant in comparison with this. 
The damning sin of adding it to this nation to extend 
slavery will be as certain to destroy us as death is to overtake 
us. The false step, once taken, cannot be retraced, and will 
be to the people who occupy what rum is to the toper. It 
eats up and uproots the very foundation on which Christian 
nations are based, and will make us the scorn of all Chris- 
tendom. Let us work, then, in a Christian spirit, as we 
■would for our individual salvation, to prevent this sad 
calamity befalling us.' " 



Ul 



CHAPTER XX. 



DEATH OF DAUGHTER. — LETTERS. — DONATION TO WIL- 
LIAMS COLLEGE. — BENEFICENCE. — LETTERS. 



On the 29tli of November, Mr. Lawrence addressed 
to his son a most joyous letter, announcing the birth 
of twin-granddaughters, and the comfortable health of 
his daughter, the wife of the Rev. Charles Mason, 
Rector of St. Peter's Church at Salem. The letter is 
filled with the most devout expressions of gratitude 
at the event, and cheering anticipations for the fu- 
ture, and yet with some feelings of uneasiness lest the 
strength of his daughter should not be sufficient 
to sustain her in these trying circumstances. He 
adds : — 

" Why, then, should I worry myself about what I cannot 
help, and practically distrust that goodness that sustains and 
cheers and enlivens my days ? " 

The fears expressed were too soon and sadly 
realized : the powers of her constitution had been too 
severely taxed, nature gave way, and, four days after- 
wards, she ceased to live. Mr. Lawrence announced 



142 DIARY AND COREESPONDENCE. 

the death of this cherished and only daughter in the 
following letter : — 

"BosTO>f, Dec. 14, 1844. 
"My dear Son, — The joyous event I mentioned of S.'s 
twins has in it sad memorials of the uncertainty of all 
joys, excepting those arising from the happiness of friends 
whose journey is ended, and whose joys are commencing. 
Long life does not consist in many years, but in the use of 
the years allowed us ; so that many a man who has seen his 
fourscore has, for all the purposes of life, not lived at all. 
And, again, others, who have impressed distinct marks, and 
have been called away before twenty-eight years have passed 
over them, may have lived long lives, and have been objects 
of grateful interest to multitudes who hai'dly spake to them 
while living. Such has been the case with our heart's love 
and desire, Susan Mason. The giving birth to those two 
babes, either of whom would have been her pride and delight, 
■was more than she could recruit from. The exhaustion and 
faintness at the time were great, but not alarming ; and the 
joy of our hearts for a season seemed unmixed. After three 
days, the alai-m for her safety had taken stronger hold of her 
other friends than of myself; and, at the time I wrote you 
last, I felt strong confidence in her recovery. On Sunday 
evening, at seven o'clock, a great change came over her, that 
precluded all hope, and she was told by C. how it was. She 
seemed prepared for it, was clear in her mind, and, with 
what little strength she had, sent messages of love. ' Give 
my love to father, and tell him I hope we shall meet in hea- 
ven,' was her graphic and characteristic message ; and then 
desired C. to lead and guide her thoughts in prayer, which 
he continued to do for as many as six times, until within the 
last half-hour of her life. At tln-ee o'clock, on Monday 
morning, the 2d instant, her pure spirit passed out of its 



DIAKY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 143 

earthly tenement to its heavenly home, where our Father has 
called her to be secured from the trials and pains and expo- 
sures to which she was here liable. It is a merciful Father, 
who knows better than we do what is for our good. "What 
is now mysterious will be made plain at the right time, for 
' He doeth all things well.' Shall we then, my dear children, 
doubt him in this ? Surely not. S. was ripe for heaven, 
and, as' a good scholar, has passed on in advance of her 
beloved ones ; but beckons us on, to be reunited, and become 
joint heirs with her of those treasures provided for those who 
are found worthy. We are now to think of her as on the 
other side of Jordan, before the same altar that we worship at, 
without any of the alloy that mixes in ours ; she praising, 
and we praying, and all hoping an interest in the Beloved 
that shall make all things seem less than nothing in compari- 
son with this. We have had the sympathy of friends ; and 
the circumstances have brought to light new friends, that 
make us feel our work here is not done. I feel called two 
ways at once, — S. beckoning me to come up ; the little ones 
appealing to the inmost recesses of my heart to stay, and 
lead them, with an old grandfather's fondest, strongest, ten- 
derest emotions as the embodiment of my child. Her 
remains are placed at the head of her mother's ; and those 
two young mothers, thus placed, will speak to their kindred 
with an eloquence that words cannot. I try to say, in these 
renewed tokens of a Father's discipline, ' Thy will be done,' 
and to look more carefully after my tendency to have some 
idol growing upon me that is inconsistent with that first 
place he requires ; and I further try to keep in mind, that, if 
I loved S. much, he loved her more, and has provided against 
the changes she was exposed to under the best care I could 
render. Let us praise God for her long life in a few years, 
and profit by the example she has left. The people of her 
own church are deeply afflicted, and not until her death i^ere 



144 DIARY AND COREESPONDENCE. 

any of us aware of the strong hold she had upon them. 
Some touching incidents have occurred, which are a better 
monument to her memory than any marble that can be 

reared 

" This morning opens most splendidly, and beautifully 
illustrates, in the appearance of the sky, that glorious eter- 
nity so much cherished in the mind of the believer. 

" With sincerest affection, your father, A. L." 

" Tremont Steeet, Tuesday morning. 

" Dear Partners, — The weather is such as to keep me 
housed to-day, and it is important to me to have something 
to think of beside myself The sense of loss will press upon 
me more than I desire it, without the other side of the 
account. All is ordered in wisdom and in mercy ; and we 
pay a poor tribute to our Father and best Friend in distrust- 
ing him. I do most sincerely hope that I may say from the 
heart, 'Thy will be done.' Please send me a thousand dol- 
lars by G., in small bills, thus enabling me to fill up the 
time to some practical purpose. It is a painful thought to 
me that I shall see my beloved daughter no more on 
eai'th ; but it is a happy one to think of joining her in 
heaven. Yours, ever, A. L. 

" A. A. La WHENCE & Co." 

On the last day of 1844, a date now to be remem- 
bered by his friends as that on which his own depar- 
ture took place, eight years later, he writes to his 
children in France : — 

" This last day of the year seems to have in it such tokens 
and emblems as are calculated to comfort and encourage the 
youthful pilgrim, just in his vigor, not less than the old one, 



DIAKY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 145 

near the end of liis journey ; for the sun in the heavens, the 
hills in the west, and the ocean on the east, all speak, in 
tones not to be mistaken, ' Be of good courage,' ' Work while 
it is day,' and receive, without murmuring, the discipline 
a Father applies ; for he knows what is best for his children. 
"Whether he plants thorns in the path, or afflicts them in any 
way, he does all for their good. Thus, my dear children, 
are we to view the removal of our beloved S. This year has 
been one of unusual prosperity and enjoyment, from the first 
day to the present month ; and all seemed so lovely here 
that there was danger of our feeling too much reliance on 
these temporals. The gem in the centre has been removed, 
to show us the tenure by which we held the others." 

At the opening of the year 1845, Mr. Lawrence, 
after noting in his property-book the usual annual 
details, makes the following reflections : — 

" The business of the past year has been eminently suc- 
cessful, and the increased value of many of the investments 
large. In view of these trusts, how shall we appear when 
the Master calls ? I would earnestly strive to keep con- 
stantly in mind the fact that he will call, and that speedily, 
upon each and all of us ; and that, when he calls, the ques- 
tion will be. How have you used these ? not How much have 
you hoarded ? " 

With the new year, Mr. Lawrence set himself at 
work with renewed zeal to carry into effect his good 
resolutions. One of the first results was a donation 
of ten thousand dollars to WiUiams College, which 
he enters upon his book with the following memo- 
randum : — 



146 DIARY AND CORBESPOXDENCE. 

" I am so well satisfied with the investments heretofore 
made for the advancement and improvement of Williams 
College that I desire to make further investment in the same, 
to the amount of ten thousand doUai's. In case any new 
professorship is established in the college, I should be grati- 
fied to have it called the Hopkins Professorship, entertfdning, 
as I do, the most entire confidence and respect for its dis- 
tinguished President." 

Nearly every day, at this period, bears some record 
of his charities ; and among others was a consider- 
able donation to a Baptist college, in another State, 
enclosed to a Baptist clergy-man ia Boston, with a 
check of fifty dollars for himself, to enable him to 
take a journey for recruiting his health and strength, 
of which he was much in need. Soon after Mr. Law- 
rence's death, it was stated in some public print, that 
his pocket-book had written upon it a text of Scrip- 
ture, calculated to remind him of his duties in the 
distribution of his wealth. The text was said to be, 
"What shall it profit a man, if he gain the whole 
world, and lose his own soul 1 " After making dili- 
gept search, the editor of this volume denied the 
statement, and also expressed the opinion that Mr. 
Lawrence needed no such memorial as this to remind 
him of his duties ; for the law of charity was too 
deeply gmven on his heart to requii-e the insertion of 
ihe text in the manner described. Some time after- 
ward, an old pocket-book was foimd, which had not 
probably been in use for many years, but which con- 



DIARY AND CORKESPONDENCE. 147 

taincd the text alluded to, inscribed in ink, though 
faded from the lapse of time and constant use. It 
may have been useful to him in early years, before he 
engaged systematically in the work of charity; but, 
during the latter years of his life, if we can judge 
from his writings, as well as from his daily actions, 
his sense of accountability was extreme, if there can 
be an extreme in the zealous perfonnance of one's 
duty in this respect. 

To A FuiEND. 

"Feb. 25. 
" To-day is one of those holy spring days ■which make us 
feel, that, with right principles and conduct, we may enjoy a 
foretaste of that beautiful home we all long for. I have been 
over the Roxbury and Dorchester hills, which are a transcript 
of the beautiful scenery around Jerusalem. Mount Zion 
seemed before me ; and, by stretching my arms, I could 
almost fly upon its sides." .... 

If the class of politicians alluded to in the follow- 
ing extract of the same letter could have foreseen the 
course of events with the same sagacity, it might have 
saved them from much uncertainty, and have been of 
service in their career : — 

" We are in a poor way pohtically in this country. This 
practice of taking up demagogues for high office is no way 
to perpetuate liberty. The new party of Native Americans 
is likely to go forward, and will break up the Whig party, 
and where it will stop is to be learned." 

" March 1. — Spring opens upon us this morning vith a 



148 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

frowning face ; the whole heaven is veiled, and the horizon 
dai-k and lowering." 

" April 17. — My venerated mother finished her earthly 
course last Friday, with the setting sun, which was emblema- 
tic of her end. She was such a woman as I am thankful to 
have descended from. Many interesting circumstances con- 
nected with her life, before and after her marriage (in 
July, 1777), are worth recording. She was in her ninetieth 
year." 



" I began a record yesterday morning, referring to my 
position and duties thirty-eight years ago, when I left my 
father's house (one week after I was free), with less than 
twenty dollars in my possession. I came an unknown and 
unfriended young man, but feeling richer the morning after 
I came than I have ever felt since ; so that I gave the man 
who came with me, in my father's chaise, a couple of dollars 
to save him from any expense, and ensure him against loss, 
by his spending two days on the journey, for which he was 
glad of an excuse. Had he been as industrious and tem- 
perate and frugal, he would have left his wife and children 
independent, instead of leaving them poor and dependent. 
These contrasts, and the duties they impose, have pressed 
heaVily upon my strength for a few days past ; and, in 
endeavoring to place in a clear view my hopes and wishes, I 
became pressed down, and, since yesterday, have been upon 
my abstinence remedy. My wish has been to do a good 
work for our Athenaeum and our Institution for Savings, by 
ipaking it the interest of the Savings' Institution to sell their 
building to the Athenieum, so that a handsome and conve- 
nient building may be erected while we are about it. To 
this end, I have oifered to supply the beautiful temple built 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 149 

for the Wasliington Bank, rent free, for one year, or a longer 
period to the end of time, while used as a Savings' Bank ; 
intending, by this, to express to those "who deposit their 
money there, that I feel deeply interested in their welfai-e, 
and would earnestly impress upon them the importance of 
saving, and, when they become rich, of spending for the good 
of their fellow-mortals the surplus which a bountiful Father 
in heaven usually allows them to acquire. This surplus with 
me, at the present time, will be sufficient to allow me to 
speak with earnestness, sincerity, and power to the tens of 
thousands industrious Thomases and Marthas, as well as the 
young mechanics, or the youngsters who have had little sums 
deposited for their education. All these characters appre- 
ciate a kind act as fully as those who move in a different 
sphere in the world. 

"7 P.M. — I have just learnea that there is some difficulty 
not easily overcome in this removal of the Bank ; and, after 
all, nothing may come out of my offer. If not, I shall have 
more spai'e means for something else." 

The value of the building thus offered was about 
twenty thousand dollars. Owing to the difficulties 
alluded to in the preceding letter, the offer was de- 
clined, though the motive for the act was fully 
appreciated. 

To A Friend. 

" My dear Friend, — I have this moment learned the 
death of your dear boy J. L., and am with you in spirit in 
this trying scene. Our Father adapts his discipline to our 
needs ; and in this (although to our weak perception it may 
seem harsh discipline) he has a Father's love and care of and 
for you ; and the time will come when all will be made clear 



150 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

to you. In this trust and confidence, I hope both your dear 
wife and self will be able to say from the heart, ' Thy will 
be done.' Our business in this world is to prepare for 
another ; and, if we act wisely, we shall view aright the calls 
upon us to make this world our great object, by attaining its 
honors, its houses, its lands, its praises for generosity, disin- 
terestedness, and divers other things that pass well among 
men. Where we hope to be welcomed, temptations are not 
needed. We pray, therefore, to be accepted, through the 
Beloved, and so make all things work together to help us 
safely through our coiu-se. 

" Yours ever, A. L." 



ISl 



CHAPTER XXL 



LETTER FROM DR. SHARP. — ILLNESS AND DEATH OF SON. 
— LETTERS. — AFFLICTIONS. 



The Rev. Dr. Sharp, of the Baptist denomination, 
who has been previously alhided to as a valued friend 
of Mr. Lawrence, had made a visit to England, the 
land of his birth, after an absence of forty years, and 
thus addresses him from Leeds, July 1 : — 

" I esteem it one of the happy events of my life, that I 
have been made personally acquainted with you. Not cer- 
tainly because of your kind benefactions to me and mine, 
but because I have enjoyed your conversation, and have been 
delighted with those manifestations of principle and conduct, 
which, let them grow under what Christian culture they 
may, I know how to honor, to acknowledge, and to love." 

The same gentleman writes shortly afterwards : — 

" I thank you for the kind manner in which you express 
yourself in regard to my occasional sermons. I never had 
any taste for controversy, nor for theological speculation ; 
although, as a Christian watchman, I have kept myself 
informed of the religious opinions that have been, and that 
are. I thank you, as does my dear wife, for your thoughtful 



152 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

concern of the sacred spot so dear both to my recollections 
and hopes. There, when life's journey is ended, I hope 
to rest by the side of those whose company and unfailing 
affection have gladdened so many of my years ; and it has 
given me a subdued pleasure, when I have thought that my 
own bed of death would be so near that of the kind and 
gentle-heai'ted friend who provided me with mine. May 
all who shall repose near that interesting spot be imbued 
with a pure and loving Christian spirit, that, when the 
trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall arise, we may all 
rise together in glorious forms, to be for ever with the 
Lord ! " 

" To OxB OP HIS Partners. 

" Sept. 30, 1845. 

" Dear ilr. Parker, — I am buoyant and afloat again, and 
able to enjoy the good things you are so liberal in providing. 
The widow's box of ointment was broken before its value 
was learned. The sermon is significant and practical. I 
would be thankful to improve under its teaching. Will you 
send me two thousand dollars this morning in Mr. Sharpe's 
clean money ? thus allowing me the opportunity of express- 
ing my gratitude to a merciful Father above, that he still 
permits me to administer the good things he has entrusted 
to me. Dear K. had a quiet night, although he did not 
sleep much during the first part. This experience is, indeed, 
the most trying ; but I hope to be able to say truly, ' Thy 
will be done.' 

" Your friend, A. L. 

" C. H. Parker, Esq^." 

' The trying experience alluded to was the serious 
illness of his youngest son Robert, then a member of 
Harvard College. He had for some time been trou- 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 153 

bled by a cough, which had now become alarming, 
and excited the worst apprehensions of his friends. 
In relation to this sickness, he writes several letters 
to his son, from which the following extracts are 
made : — 

• " Oct. 15. 

" We are in great anguish of spirit on account of dear 11. 
We are getting to feel reconciled to parting with the de;u' 
child, and that he has done for us what any parents might 
feel thankful for, by living a good life, and in nineteen years 
giving us no cause to wish any one of them blotted out. If 
now called away, he will have lived a long life in a few years, 
and will be spared the trials and sufferings that flesh is heir 
to, and will be gathered like early fi-uit, before the blight or 
frost or mildew has marked it." 

" Oct. 29. 
" R. remains gradually failing with consumption, but 
without much suffering, and perfectly aware of his situation. 
He never appeared so lovely as he has on his sick-bed ; so 
that his happy spirit and resignation, without a complaint or 
a wish that any thing had been done differently, keeps us as 
happy as we can be under such a weight of apprehension 
that we may so soon part with him. He asked me yesterday 
what I should write to you about him. I told him I should 
say that he was very sick, and might never be any better ; 
but that he might also be better if the great Physician saw 
best, as it is only for him to speak, and the disease would be 
cured. If he were taken before me, I told him, it would 
be, I hoped, to welcome me to the company of the loved 
ones of our kindred and friends who have gone before, and 
to the society of angels and just men made perfect, who 
compose the great congregation that are gathered there from 



154 DIARY AND CORKESPONDENCE. 

all the world, that God's love, through Christ, has redeemed. 
God so loved the world that he gave his only-begotten Son 
to redeem it from sin ; and his teachings should not be lost 
on us, while we have power to profit by them. In this 
spirit, we talked of the good men whose writings have an 
influence in helping on this good work ; and especially we 
talked of Dr. Doddridge, and his ' Kise and Progress.' • 

" P. M. — I have been with M. to Brookline since writing 
the above. The falling leaves teach a beautiful lesson. The 
green leaf, the rose, the cypress, now enclosed to you, and 
all from your grounds, are instructive. These were cut 
within the last two hours." 

"Nov. 1. 
" Dear R. had a trying day yesterday, and we thought 
might not continue through the night. He is still alive, 
and may continue some time ; was conscious and clear in 
his mind after he revived yesterday j feels ready and willing 
and hoping to be with his Saviour." 

" Nov. 14. 
" We toil for treasui-e through our years of active labor, 
and, when acquii-ed, are anxious to have it well secured 
against the time when we or our children may have need of 
it ; and we feel entire confidence in this secui-ity. We allow 
the common flurries of the world to pass by without dis- 
turbing our quiet or comfort essentially. What treasure of 
a temporal character is comparable with a child who is every 
thing a Christian parent could desire, and who is just coming 
into mature life universally respected and beloved, and who 
is taken before any cloud or spot has touched him, and who 
has left bright and clear marks upon those who have come 
within his sphere of influence ? Such was R. The green 
earth of Mount Auburn covers his mortal remains ; the 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 155 

heavens above have his immortal ; and, as a ripe child of 
God, 1 feel that blessed assurance of entire security which 
adds another charm to that blessed company to which I 
hope, through mercy, to be admitted in our Father's own 
good time. This early death of our beloved youngest comes 
upon us as an additional lesson, necessary, without doubt, to 
prepare us for our last summons ; and the I'easons which 
now seem mysterious will be fully understood, and will 
show us that our good required^ this safe keeping of this 
treasure, so liable to be made our idol. R. had passed the 
dangerous period of his college life without blemish, and 
was only absent from prayers three times (which were for 
good cause), and had a settled purpose, from the beginning 
of his college life, so to conduct in all respects as to give his 
parents no cause for anxiety ; and, for the last year, I have 
felt perfectly easy in regard to him. "We have visited his 
grave to-day. The teachings there are such as speak to the 
heart with an eloquence that language cannot. Dear S. and 
R. ! She the only daughter, he the only son of his mother ! 
and both placed there since you left ! " 

" Nov. 22. 
" President H., in a letter a few days before I wrote to 
you, had this sentiment : ' The old oak, shorn of its green 
branches, is more liable to decay.' Applying this to the 
old oak fronting the graves of those loved ones who have 
passed on, the outspread branches of which make the spot 
more lovely, I was more deeply impressed than mere words 
could have impressed me. A few months after the death of 
S., a violent storm tore off a main limb of the old oak, about 
midway between the ground and the top, in such way as to 
mar its beauty, and endanger its Kfe. The limb fell upon 
the graves, but avoided the injury to the monuments which 
might have been expected. Since then, I noticed that 



156 niAKY AND CDKKESrOXDENCE. 

some of the lo'vrer limbs cast a sort of blight or mildew 
upon the pure white of vour mother's monument, and they 
required tiressing. I desired the ' master ' to do this, and 
also to come luid heal the wound occasioned by the loss of 
this main limb on that side of the tree. The trimming out 
was done at once ; the other was left undone until the 
request was renewed. On my visit there last week, I dis- 
covered, for the first time, that the wound had been healed, 
and the body of the tree appeared smootli, and of its natural 
color, and its health such as to give good hope that its other 
bi"anchcs will spread out their shade more copiously than 
before. What a lesson was here ! The appeal was to the 
heart ; and, in my whole life, I remember none more elo- 
quent. To-day, I have been to Mount Auburn again ; and 
the spot seems to be ' none other than the gate of heaven.' " 

•• Dec 22. 
" Twenty-five years ago this morning. I came home firom 
Plymouth, where I had spent the night previous, and heaid 
Webster's great address. He has never done any thing to 
surpass it j and it now is a model and a text for the youth 
of oitr country. The people who then were present are 
principally taken hence ; and the consideration of how the 
time allowed has been spent, and how it now fares witii us, 
is of deep interest. God in mercy gi-aut us to act our pait 
so as to meet his approval, when called to answer for the 
trust in our hands ! I have thought of the emblem of the 
* old oak,' till it has assumed a beauty almost beyond any 
thing in nature ; and, if I live to see the fresh leaves of 
spring spreading their covering over the head of the stranger 
pr the friend who may stop under its shade, I will have a 
sketch of the spot painted, if the right person can be found. 
There is in the spot and scene a toucliing eloquence that 
language can scarcely communicate. The dear child's ex- 



PIAKY .\N1> rOKKKSrOMlENCK. 157 

pressive look, and motion of his finger, when he said, ' I 
am going up,' will abide with me while I live. The 
dealings of a Father with me have been marked, but ofl- 
tiraes mysterious for a season. Now many things are clear ; 
and all others will be, I trust, when I am fitted to know 
them." 

To HIS Grandsos. 

" Boston, Dec. 30, 1845. 
" My dear F., — Your charming letter of i28th November 
reached me by last steamer, and showed, in a practic;U way, 
how important the lessons of childhood are to the proper 
performance of the duties of manhood. It carried me back 
to the time when my own mother taught me, and, from that 
period, forward through the Ciuly lessons inculcated upon 
your father, and especially to the time when he began to 
write me letters, which I always encouraged him in, and 
thus formed a habit which has been the best security for 
our home affections that can be devised when separated from 
those most dear to us. If the prayers and labors of your 
ancestors are .answered by your good progress and good 
conduct in the use of the privileges you enjoy, you will 
come forth a better and more useful man than any of the 
generations preceding ; for you enjoy advantages that none 
of us have enjoyed. My heart beats quicker and stronger 
whenever I think of you ; and my prayers ascend for you 
at all hours, and through every scene connecting us. Last 
Saturday, I had the first sleigh-ride of the season. The day 
was beautiful ; and there was just snow enough to make 
the sleigh run smoothly. I visited Blount Auburn ; and the 
day and place, the ' old oak ' standing in front of our graves 
leafless and apparently almost lifeless, spoke to me a lan- 
guage as intelligible as if utterance had been given in sounds. 
I thought of you, dear F., as my eldest grandson, and in a 



158 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

manner the representative of the family to future times, and 
asked myself whether I was doing all I ought to make you 
feel the force of your trusts. There lie the mortal parts of 
your dear aunt and uncle, both placed there since you left 
home ; and the spirits of both, I trust, are now rejoicing 
with the multitude of the beloved ones, whose work here is 
well done, and whom the Saviour has bid to ' come unto 
him,' and through whom they hoped to be accepted. Dear 
B.. seems to call to us to ' come up ; ' and, whether I ever 
see you again or not, I pray you never to forget that he was 
such an uncle as you might well feel anxious to copy in 
your conduct to your parents ; for he had a settled principle 
to do nothing to cause his parents anxiety. So, if you see 
your young companions indulging in any evil practices which 
may lead to bad habits, avoid them ; for prevention is better 
than remedy. "When you stand near the ' old oak,' whether 
its branches are green with shady leaves, or dry from natural 
decay, let it speak to your conscience, ' Come up,' and receive 
the reward promised to the faithful. 

" Ever your affectionate grandfather, 

"A. L." 

The year 1 845 closed with many sad recollections ; 
and nearly every letter written at this period dwells 
upoij the mournful events which had marked its 
course. In one letter, he says, " Death has cut right 
and left in my family." In a little more than twelve 
months, ten of his own immediate family and near 
connections were removed, and most of them when 
least expected. Although bowed down, and pene- 
trated with grief at each successive blow, there was a 
deep-seated principle in Mr. Lawrence's heart, wljich 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 159 

made him rise above them all, and receive each call 
in that spirit of submission which the Christian faith 
alone can give. His own sorrows seemed only to 
augment his sympathy for the woes of others, and 
to excite him to renewed efforts in the great cause of 
charity and truth, to which he had consecrated every 
talent he possessed. In this spirit he makes an entry 
in his memorandum-book on the first day of the 
opening year. 



160 



CHAPTEE XXII. 



KEFLECTIOXS. — EXPEXDIXTRES. — LETTERS. — DOXATIOX 
FOR LIBRARY AT "WILLIAMS COLLEGE. — VIEWS OX 
STUDY OF AXATOMY. 



" J.\x. 1, 184:6. — The business of the past year has been 
very prosperous in our country ; and my own duties seem 
more clearly pointed out than ever before. What am I left 
here for, and the young branches taken home ? Is it not to 
teach me the danger of being unfaithful to my trusts ? Dear 
R. taken ! the delight of my eyes, a treasure secured ! which 
explains better than in any other way what my Father sees 
me in need of. I hope to be faithful in apph"ing some of 
my trusts to the uses God manifestly explains to me by his 
dealings. I repe.it, ' Thy will be done.' " 

That his trusts, so far as the use of his property 
was concerned, were faithfully performed, may be 
judged from the fact, that in July, or at the termina- 
tion of the half-year, iu making up his estimate of 
income and expenditures, he remarks that the latter 
are nearly twenty thousand dollars in advance of the 
former. Mr. Lawrence was often much disturbed by 
the publicity which attended his benevolent opera- 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 161 

tions. There are, perhaps, thousands of the recipients 
of his favors now living, who alone are conscious of 
his bounty towards themselves ; but, when a public 
institution became the subject of his liberality, the 
name of the donor could not so easily be concealed. 
The following letter will illustrate the mode which he 
sometimes was obliged to adopt to avoid that pub- 
licity ; and it was his custom not unfrequently to 
contribute liberally to objects of charity through 
some person on whom he wished the credit of the 
donation to fall. 

To President Hopkins. 

" Boston, Jan. 26, 1846. 
" My dear Friend, — Since Saturday, I have thought 
much of the best mode of helping your college to a library 
building without getting into the newspapers, and have 
concluded that you had better assume the responsibility of 
building it ; and, if anybody objects that you can't afford it, 
you may say you have friends whom you hope to have aid 
from ; and I will be responsible to you for the cost, to an 
amount not exceeding five thousand dollars ; so that you 
may feel at liberty to prepare such a building as you will be 
satisfied with, and which will do credit to your taste and 
judgment fifty years hence. If I am taken before this is 
finished, which must be this year, my estate will be answer- 
able, as I have made an entry in my book, stating the case. 
I had written a longer story, after you left me, on Saturday 
evening, but have laid it aside to hand you this, with best 
wishes, and that all may be done ' decently and in order.' 
I will pay a thousand or two dollars whenever it is wanted 
for the work. Your friend, 

"A. L." 
21 



162 DIARY AND CORBESPONDENCE. 

Mr. Lawrence had read in the newspapers the 
memorial to Congress of Mrs. Martha Gray, widow 
of Capt. Robert Gray, the well-known navigator, who 
discovered, first entered, and gave its present name to, 
the Columbia River. Capt. Gray had been in the 
naval service of his country ; and his widow, who 
had suridved him for forty years, amidst many diffi- 
culties and struggles for support, petitioned for a 
pension in consideration of the important discovery, 
and for the services rendered by her husband. Mr. 
Lawrence sent to Mrs. Gray a memorial of his regard, 
with the following note : — 

" As a token of respect to the widow of one whose name 
and fame make a part of the property of every American 
who has a true heart, will Mrs. Gray accept the accompany- 
ing trifle from one, who, though personally unknown, felt 
her memorial to Congress through every nerve, and will 
hope to be allowed the pleasiu'e of paying his respects in 
person wh^n his health permits ? " 



About the same date, he says to President Hop- 
kins : — 

" I am happily employed, these days, in administering 
upon my own earnings, and have hope of hearing soon from 
you and your good work. I am still on my good behavior, 
hut have been able to chat a little with Mr. D., and 
administer to His Excellency Governor Briggs, who has 
had a severe trial of fever and ague. On Saturday, he rode 
an hour with me, and shortened his face considerably." 



DIARY AND COKRESPONDENCE. 163 

After receiving the proposed plan of the library 
which he had authorized to be built at Williams 
College, Mr. Lawrence writes to the same, on May 
15: — 

" I left off, after a brief note to you, three hours since, 
furnishing you a text on epicureanism to preach from, which 
I trust will find favor and use. 

" What think you ? Why, that I am interfering in your 
business. When I awoke this morning, thinks I to myself. 
My friend won't have elbow-room in the centre of his 
octagon ; and, as there is plenty of land to build upon, he 
may as well make his outside to outside fifty feet as forty- 
four feet, and thus give himself more space in the centre. 
The alcoves appear to me to be very nice ; and, in the 
matter of expense, my young friend A. L. H. will see 
to that, to the tune of one or two thousand dollars. So 
you may feel yourself his representative in acting in this 
matter." 

" April 22. — My birthday ! Threescore years old ! My 
life hanging by a thread for years, and apparently, at times, 
within a few hours of its close, still continued, while so 
many around in the prime of life and vigor have been called 
away ! " 

To A FaiEND. 

" Tkemont Steeet, April, 1846. 

" My Friend , — I have arisen after my siesta, and, 

as the Quakers say, am moved by the spirit to speak. So 
you will give what I have to say the value you consider it 
worth J and, in the first place, I will say, that this period of 
the year is so full of deeply interesting memories of the 
past, that I hardly know where to begin. From my earliest 



itJI iiiAiiv AMit run II lyifiiN II rcN I It. 

tliiyn, (III! filciiy "I lli'' iiili'llifj;i'n( o irncliiiif/ ( inilmi iil lin 
ii'i'liM'K of till' IDlli A|iiil. '"II), lliiil llir Itlilinli wi'in luiniiif/, 
wait II liiiinl iiilninliiifr iilii'. My liillin liKiiiiilcil ( icii. 
I'rciKrolt.'n liiiinr, iiliil inilc, ill ii (i|ici'il wliirli yciiiiifj; iticli 
rviMi III' llir |ii'rnniil. iliiy wiiiilil liiiiik iiipiil, Ici llui piiiiitJi mil 
III' I ho liiwii, liy Siiiiily I'liiiil, mill iinliru'il dm iniiiiili< iiinii 
U> iinnniiililo iil IIim rmilri' iif (iir (own rmlliwllli. liti iiiiidn 
n. I'lMif/n III ninnii niilrn, rnlliiifi; nil nil liin mkmi, mill WiiN 
liiii'li III liitt I'lillinr'n liininn ill I'liily iiiiiiiili'H. At cmc n'rlcx^k, 
I'. l\!,, tlin riiiii|iiiiiy \Yiin in ri<ii(lill(<NN In iiiiilili, iiinl iinilri' 
WHy III ('iiiiidiil 111 iiii'i'l llifi lliilinli. 'I'lif^y lu'|il nn iinlil 
I liny rniii'lit'il ( 'iiiiilii iilf{i< i liiil, litiloin tliut, lliiiy liiiil nt'cn 
mill liomil nil lliiil liiiil lit'iMi iloiin liy llm ti'iio|m Nr<iit nut to 
(liiiiciiril. 'riui.]ilnii^li WIIN IrlV ill lli(< lii<lil : miil my ^rmiil- 
liltlini', wllli liin liniNr mill wiiffiin, liinil^lil |ii'nvininnN In IiIn 
lirifjIlliniM mill Inn rinii rilinilly iil'ltn. My |JI iiMilliKil liii nil 
my ninlliri'n niiln, llirii living in ( 'iiiiimhiI, Iiiim drni'iiliril to 
mo iivnr miil iivor iigiiin llir< ii|i|ir<m'mi('(< of tlir IIi'IiInIi, iin nIio 
IIinI nii>v tlicm I'liiniiig ovci' llir liill rtiiiii liiiicnlii, hIkiiiI. I^vll 
inilnrt iVom tlii< rtiiilio ol' ('oiiodVil ; tlin miii jiint. liiiinfi ; mid 
tlio iimI rniilfi, fililli'i iiif.' iiiiiMlicIri, mid roiiiTiil miiiy, tin 
i'il|illViillilf{ In MM III iiriirr liiiii'M, ii|)|iinii iiif.; In lici im lllO 
illip,rl nl' ili'rill lirlinll, In l>n iniillli'd mid llilli'd. Silo I lioiofoi'tl 
III) lioi liiMiiio willi lior clliidloil (llio linllrio Wliri Htmillillf( 
uilliiii llio l:iii| Ihiity yi'illH, iilld iiiiiv I"' iinw, iioiir llio tlllll 
(n' mi llii'niij^li llodrnrd, liiiH" a milo nr mniii tluH dido nl' 
('niionrd mooliiig liniino). mid woiil llii'niif.;li tlio liidilN, iiild 
nv.'l III.' Iiillr.. In ii nnlo |.liiio nl' rollout. 'I'lio llliliidi, you 
iit'O invmo, nil llioii ii'lioiil, liiid ii limd liino nl il. TIlOV 
worn rdinl dn>vii liKo wild ^111110, mid loll liy itio >viiyNido to 
llio nl llO IllllOII ll|l III! il iiii|.;lil liii|ipoil. 'I'lllOO lIlllM lolV 

wllliiit f<tiii nlinl nl' my ^I'liiidmiitlioi'N Iiiiiiho woio hiKcn up, 
mid diod ill tlio cniirnc of ii vory low Iumiin. IIiiI. wimt I 
ntn coining to in tlii* ; lionl I'oroy, you ktuiw, wan iitint out 



(It A II V A Nil (:oiilil',«l''».vlic,Nr:K. lfJ/> 

from lidnl.oti wit.li ii strong liody of I.KKipM In ]niiti:<l I.Iioho 
ftrnt umit, (lilt, ; (uifl, l)iit for thi»t, thn wholo would Imvti bo#in 
rln^l.roynd or iriiido (irinonurR. Alioiit, tlirofi ydiirn ii^o, Lord 
J'riid(io<i, nnr.Dnd nofi of l,ord rcri-y, wiv* \wrti ; iirid I \ini\ 
f.onsidfinililf! doli^lit.fiil iiif.Drcoiiriifi witli h'im. Mn, (w you 
rriny widl niip|>ri<;o, wiit rliuiply int.firrint^rl in nil f.liut roliilfid 
to hin ffillior ; luid I fri':t. Iiii/i in llir; lilirnry nt, f 'nmliridj/o, 
wlinrn ho wiw vnry rilmfirvimt of l.lio ordor nnd itrriui^mnnrit, 
nnd nfipncially fif ttin curiouN old dociurifinlK and liookn^o 
niwly nrrftiiKml, t.oiuihiri^ Uin niirly liistory of i)iti provint^o, 
Aftr.r Ifidvinx dimtiridj^fi, lio wmit to Mr. (/'unliirif/'n und Mr, 
J'riift'd lit. Wiit.«irt,*iWfi, iirid wim rnii'th irit.firfiiitnd in nil t.diit 
wn in t.liin cit.y urn proiifl of. I liiwl not ulrnn^tli to lift 
dnvotod to liirn morn timn »,ri li/jiir or two ut n tirnn, hiivin|( 
thnn nomo otiinr utriin^nrs under my cdrn, linlon^in^ to (itrv. 
(/olflbrookn'd fiirnily, f^Jy f/olnlirookn l/ninf^ » ni«w;e of 
Mftjor Andr^; ; so tlint f liwl frrily «omo linlf-flo/nri intwrviewn 
with him, fill of wlii'-h wnrn inntrii'-tivn iinrl inlflrnntinf/." 

'I'll*! (Wnnf.cX'um <»f ImrrKiri liorli*"? I»y rnf!flif:{il «t,u- 
rhtrifM li-'iH always Ii««ti a Riilijrrt, of i\ii-^friini^i] pr<rjii- 
(lif:f; in N':W Kfij^lurifl ; and, ♦■vf-ri to f,hin day, if, i-x'tnin 
in «o (^niat, a <\i-^ri-i: that Ui»; fW;iIi»,i<;» for tliis imj)i>r- 
tarif, and al<-Kiliit/ly cnntmlhil l»r;iiKli of instruction an? 
not n*!arly aM fin-.td m tli»;y Hliould \ii:, nor hii(:]i as 
an; afford'td in tli*; b^IiooIm hi' otli<:r f;oiintrif;«, WhoTi 
th<;i»fi rJiffl(;ijlti<!« «hall fi»t nrnovd, and tli<- prfjiirlifKi 
allayr^d aj/ainst th<; arfjiiisition of a kind of knowl«'/lj/«! 
whirh it it of i)ii: utmost int,<rr<rst to irvirry on*; that 
thfi nurgfum anrl jjJiyxidan nhtiW rtuArhc., many yoon^ 
m*;n will n;main at hom»;, a/irl a/;/|ijir»! tJiat »*lu':ation, 
which, witli i'nw cxt-tipi'iont*, might h*; att^inwl hftre an 



166 DIARY AND COREESPONDENCE. 

well as by a resort to foreign schools. In this preju- 
dice, Mr. Lawrence could not sympathize, as will be 
seen in the following letter : — 

To Rev. Mark Hopkins, D.D. 

" Many years ago, there was a great stir, on account of 
graves being robbed for subjects for dissection, and some 
la'wgg were passed : the want became so pressing that sub- 
jects were brought from a long distance, and in a very bad 
state. Dr. Warren was attending me, and said he had 
invited the Legislature, then in session, to attend a lecture in 
the Medical College. He told me he intended to explain the 
necessity of having fit subjects, he having been poisoned in 
his lecture to his students a few days before, and was then 
suffering from it. He invited me also to attend, which I 
did, and took with me my precious boy R. While lectur- 
ing, the doctor had a man's hand, which he had just taken 
off at the hospital, brought in, nicely wrapped up in a wet 
cloth, by his son J. M. W., then a youngster. There were 
present about two hundred representatives ; and, as soon as 
they saw the' real hand, two or three fainted neai'ly away, 
and a half dozen or more made their escape from the room. 
The scene was so striking that I told Dr. Warren it wag 
a pity that such a prejudice should exist ; and, as I was 
desirous to be of use as far as in my power, and probably 
should be a good subject for him, I would gladly have 
him use me in the way to instruct the young men ; but to 
take care of my remains, and have them consumed or buried, 
unless my bones were kept. I also told him that I desired 
yery much to have this false feeling corrected, and perhaps 
my example might do something toward it. Some time 

afterwards, I spoke to upon the subject ; but I found it 

gave pain, and the plan was given up A. L." 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 16T 

" Outward gains are ordinarily attended with inward losses. 
He indeed is rich in grace whose graces are not hindered by 
his riches." 

In a letter, dated June 3, Mr. Lawrence bears testi- 
mony to the character and services of the late Louis 
Dwight, so long and favorably known as the zealous 
Secretary of the Massachusetts Prison Discipline 
Society : — 

" I have this moment had an interview with Louis Dwight, 
who leaves for Europe in two days. My labors and experi- 
ence with him for nearly a quarter of a century enable me to 
testify to his ability, and unceasing efforts in the cause." 

To the same friend he says, a few days later : — 

" Dear S. and E.. speak in words without sounds, through 
every breeze, and in every flower, and in the fragrance of 
every perfume from the fields or the trees." 

''May 27, 1846. — The following commentary* on the 

Lectures of the Rev. Dr. accompanied their return to 

me from one to whom I had loaned the volume. I have 
now no recollection who the person is ; but the words are 
full, and to the point : — 

"'This sucking the marrow all out of our Bible, and 
leaving it as dry as a husk, pray what good to man, or honor 
to God, does that do ? If we are going to fling away the old 
book from which ten thousand thousand men have drawn 
and are still drawing the life of their souls, then let us stand 
boldly up, and fling it away, cover and all ; unless indeed a 
better way would be to save the boards and gilding, and 
make a family checker-board of it.' " 

* Supposed to be by Hon. Jeremiah Mason. 



168 



CHAPTER XXIII. 



DONATION TO LAWRENCE ACADEMY. — CORRESPONDENCE 
WITH R. G. PARKER. — SLEIGH-RIDES. — LETTERS. — ESTA- 
BLISHES CHILDREN'S HOSPITAL. — A"\"ERSION TO NOTO- 
RIETY. 



Mr. Lawrence had always taken a deep interest in 
the academy at Groton, of which in early life he, and 
all his brothers and sisters, had been members. The 
residence of his former master, James Brazer, Esq., 
with whom he lived when an apprentice, bordered on 
the academy groimds. It was a large, square, old- 
fashioned house, and easily convertible to some useful 
purpose, with the growing prosperity of the Institu- 
tion. He accordingly purchased the estate; and, in 
July, 1846, presented it to the Board of Trustees by 
a deed, with the follovnng preamble : — 

" To all persons to whom these presents shall come, I, 
Amos Lawrence, of the City of Boston, in the County of 
Suffolk, and Commonwealth of Massachusetts, Esquire, send 
greeting : 

" Born and educated in Groton, in the County of Middle- 
sex, in said Commonwealth, and deeply interested in the 
welfare of that town, and especially of the Lawrence Aca- 



IMARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 169 

demy, established in it by my honored father, Samuel Law- 
rence, and his worthy associates, and grateful for the benefits 
which his and their descendants have derived from that insti- 
tution, I am desirous to promote its future prosperity ; trust- 
ing that those charged with the care and superintendence of 
it will ever strive zealously and faithfully to maintain it as a 
nursery of piety and sound learning." 

This had been preceded by a donation of two thou- 
sand dollars, with smaller gifts, at various dates, of 
valuable books, a telescope, &c., besides the founda- 
tion of several free scholarships. The present prospe- 
rity of the academy is, however, mainly due to his 
brother, William Lawrence, who has been by far its 
greatest benefactor; having, in 1844, made a donation 
of ten thousand dollars, followed by another, in 1846, 
of five thousand, and, finally, by will, bequeathed to it 
the sum of twenty thousand. The following memo- 
randa are copied from Mr. Lawrence's donation- 
book : — 

" Aiig. 20, 1847. — I have felt a deep interest in Groton 
Academy for a long time ; and while brother L. was living, 
and its President, he had it in charge to do what should be 
best to secure its greatest usefulness, and, while perfecting 
these plans, he was suddenly taken from this world. Since 
then, I have kept on doing for it j, and, up to January, 1846, 
have expended rather more than $6,000. Since then, I have 
expended for the Brazer Estate, $4,400, and repairs on the 
fences and around it, up to this date, $1,200 ; for library, 
books, medals, apparatus, piano-forte, tools, &c., $1,800 ; 
four scholarships at Bowdoin College, and four at Williams 



170 DIARY AXD CORRESPONDENCE. 

College, $4,000: making, since January, 1846, $11,400; 
beside the aid to poor students, paying an assistant teacher a 
portion of the time, and other matters, which make my outlay 
for the school about $20,000. I had prepared $10,000 more, 
which brother William has assumed, and has taken the school 
upon himself, to give it such facilities as wUl make it a very 
desirable place for young men to enter to get a good prepa- 
ration for business or college life. 

"Dec. 22, 1848. —On. the 14th day of October, my 
brother William died, and, by his ■wUl, has given $20,000 to 
the Lawrence Academy, to accumulate to $30,000. This 
will make the amount of his donations upwards of $35,000. 
The amount I have paid, in the various ways needed, will 
exceed $25,000 ; and I shall continue to pay as needed." 

On Jiily 15, Mr. Lawrence made a considerable 
donation of books to the Johnson School for girls, 
accompanied by a note to E. G. Parker, Esq., the 
Principal, from which the following extract is ta- 
ken : — 

" The sleigh-ride comes to me as though daguerreotyped, 
and I can hardly realize that I am here to enjoy stiU further 
the comfort that I then enjoyed. If the pupils of your school 
at that time were gratified, I was more than satisfied, and feel 
myself a debtor to your school of this day ; and, in asking 
you to accept, for the use of the five hundred dear girls 
who attend upon your institution, such of the books accom- 
panying as you think proper for them, I only pay a debt 
which I feel to be justly due. The Johnson School is in my 
own district ; and many a time, as I have passed it in my 
rides, have I enjoyed the appropriate animation and glee 
they have manifested in their gambols and sports during 



DIARY AND CORRESPOXDEXCE. 171 

their intermission, and have felt as though I would gladly be 
among them to encourage them. Say to them, although per- 
sonally unknown, I have looked on, and felt as though I 
wanted to put my hand upon their heads, and give them 
a word of counsel, encouragement, and my blessing. This 
is what I am left here for ; and, when the Master calls, 
if I am only well enough prepared to pass examination, and 
receive the * Well done ' promised to such as are faithful, 
then I may feel that all things here are less than nothing in 
comparison to the riches of the future." 

The allusion to the sleigh-ride was called forth by 
a note received from Mr. Parker a day or two before, 
in which that gentleman writes : — 

" As you have not the credit of a very good memory, so 
far as your own good actions are concerned, it will be proper 
that I should remind you that the occasion to which I refer 
was the time that the pupils of the Franklin School were 
about enjoying a sleigh-ride, from which pleasure a large 
number were excluded. On that occasion, as you were 
riding by, you were induced to inquire the reason of the 
exclusion of so many sad little faces ; and, on learning that 
their inability to contribute to the expense of the excursion 
would cause them to be left behind, you veiy generously 
directed that all should be furnished with seats, and a draft 
made upon you for the additional expense." 

To a fondness for children, there seemed to be 
united in Mr. Lawrence a constant desire to exert an 
influence upon the youthful mind ; and rarely was the 
opportunity passed over, when, by a word of advice 
or encouragement, or the gift of an appropriate book, 



172 DIAKY AND CORRESPONDENCE 

he thought he could effect his object. His person 
was well known to the boys and girls who passed him 
in the streets ; and, in the winter season, his large, 
open sleigh might often be seen crowded by a load of 
his youthful friends, whom he had allowed to crowd 
in to the utmost capacity of his vehicle. 

The acquaintances thus made would often, by his 
invitation, call to see him at his residence, and there 
would receive a kind notice, joined with such words 
of encouragement and advice as could not sometimes 
fail to have a lasting and beneficial influence. 

" Aug. 2. — ' Give an account of thy stewardship, for 
thou mayst be no longer steward.' — Luke, xvi. 2. 

" How ought this to be sounded in our ears ! and how 
ought we to be influenced by the words ! Surely there can 
be no double meaning here. The words are emphatic, cleai', 
and of vast concern to every man. Let us profit by them 
while it is day, lest the night overtake us, when we can no 
longer do the work of the day." 

On the 22d of August, Mr. Lawrence sent a cane 
to Governor Briggs, at Pittsfield, with the following 
iriscription graven upon it : — 

FROM THE "OLD OAK" OF MOUNT AUBURN: 
A MEUENTO OF LOVED ONES GONE BEFORE. 

AMOS LAWRENCE TO GEORGE N. BRIGGS. 
1846. 

The cane was accompanied by the following 
note : — 



DIAKY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 173 

" My dear Friend, — Your letter of Monday last came, 
as all your letters do, just right as a comforter through a 
feeble week ; for I have been confined to the house, and 
unable to speak above a whisper, most of the time, and am 
still not allowed to talk or work much. The corresponding 
week of the last year, when our precious R. was your guest, 
comes over my mind and heart, at all hours of the night and 
the day, in a manner I need not attempt to describe to you ; 
and it is only distressing when I see the suffering of his 
dear mother. But we feel that he is now the guest of the 
Supreme Governor, whose care and kindness takes from him 
all that can interrupt his perfect happiness through all time ; 
and this surely ought to satisfy us. The good opinion of 
good men you know how to value, and can therefore judge 
how much I prize yours. Acting upon the public mind for 
good as you do, the memorial from the old oak will not be 
without its use in your instruction and advice to the young, 
whose special improvement and safety you have so much at 
heart. The cane is a part of the same bi'anch as that sent to 
President H., and came to me since noon to-day. Accept it 
with assurances of continued and increased affection and 
respect. Most sincerely yours, 

"A. L." 

" Aug. 28. — Called at shop, Washington Street, 

and there saw a nice-looking boy seventeen or eighteen years 
old, named T. S., to whom I gave a word of good counsel 
and encouragement. Shall look after him a little, as I like 
his manners." 

" Aug. 29. — A woman writes a figuring letter, calling 
herself S. M. ; says she is sixty years old ; has lost her sons, 
and wants help ; came fi.-om New Hampshire. Also, N. T. 
wants aid to study, or something else. Also, a Mr. F., with 
a great share of hair on his face, gold ring, and chains, wants 



174 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

to travel for his health ; has a wife and child. These three 
cases within twenty-four hours are very forbidding." 

The notoriety attendant upon acts of beneficence, 
which Mr. Lawrence instinctively shrunk from, 
and which often deters the sensitive from the good 
acts, which, without this penalty, they would gladly 
perform, was, as has before been stated, a subject 
of serious annoyance. This is illustrated by the 
following note, written to Mr. Parker, the Principal 
of the Johnson School of girls : — 

" Oct. 2, 1846. 
" I hope to send a few volumes to help forward the 
young guides of the mind and heart of the sons of New 
England, wherever they may be ; for it is the mothers who 
act upon their sons more than all others. I hope to be felt 
as long as I am able to work, and am quite as vain as I 
ought to be of my name and fame, but am really afraid 
I shall wear out my welcome if my little paragraphs are 
printed so -frequently in the newspapers. I gave some 
books last Monday, and saw them acknowledged yesterday 
in the newspaper, and since have received the letter from 
the children. Now, my dear sir, I merely want to say, that 
I .hope you will not put me in the newspaper at present ; 
and, when my work is done here, if you have any thing to 
say about me that will not hurt my childr-en and grand- 
children, say on." 

At about the same date, Mr. Lawrence received a 
letter from the parties to whom the books above 
alluded to had been sent, inquiring if he could sug- 
gest the name of some benevolent individual, to 



DIAKY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 175 

whom application might be made for aid in furthering 
the objects of the Association. He writes : — 

" In reply to yours of to-day, I know of no one, but 
must request that my name be not thrust forward, as though 
I was to be a byword for my vanity. I want to do good, 
but am sorry to be published, as in the recent case." 

During the autumn of this year, Mr. Lawrence 
purchased the large building in Mason Street, which 
had, for many years, been used as the Medical School 
of Harvard College, with the intention of founding a 
charitable hospital for children. He had heard of 
the mode in which such institutions were conducted 
in France, and believed that a great benefit would be 
conferred on the poorer classes by caring for their 
sick chUdren when their own poverty or occupations 
prevented their giving them that attention which 
could be secured in an institution of thiS kind. The 
great object was to secure the confidence of that 
class, and to overcome their repugnance to giving 
up their children to the care of others. The plan 
had not been tried in this country ; though in France, 
where there exists a much larger and more needy 
population, the system was completely successful. 
Although but an experiment, Mr. Lawrence consi- 
dered the results which might be obtained of sufficient 
magnitude to warrant the large outlays required. He 
viewed it not only as a mode of relieving sickness 
and suffering, but as a means of exercising a human- 



176 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

izing influence upon those who should come directly 
under its influence, as well as upon that class of 
persons genei-ally for whose benefit it was designed. 
His heart was ever open to the cry of suffering ; 
and he was equally ready to relieve it, whether it 
came from native or foreigner, bond or free. The 
building which had been purchased for the object, 
from its internal arrangement, and from its too con- 
fined position, was found less suitable than another, 
in the southerly part of the city, where an open view 
and ample grounds were moi'e appropriate for the 
purposes; while there was no cause for that prejudice, 
which, it was found, existed toward the project in the 
location first thought of With characteristic libe- 
rality, Mr. Lawrence offered the Medical College, 
now not required, to the Boston Society of Natural 
History at the cost, with a subscription from himself 
of five thoiffeand dollars. The oflfer was accepted. 
An effort was made by the Society to raise by sub- 
scription the necessary funds ; and the result was 
their possession of the beautiful building since occu- 
pied by their various collections in the different 
departments of natural history. The large house on 
Washington Street was soon put in complete repair, 
suitably furnished, proAaded with physicians and 
nurses, and opened as the Children's Infirmary, with 
' accommodations for thirty patients. The following 
spring was marked by a great degree of mortality and 
suffering among the emigrant passengers who arrived 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 177 

at this port ; and consequently the beds were soon 
occupied by whole families of children, who arrived 
in the greatest state of destitution and misery. Many 
cases of ship-fever were admitted ; so that several of 
the attendants were attacked by it, and the service 
became one of considerable danger. Many now living 
in comfort attribute the preservation of their life to 
the timely succor then furnished ; and, had no other 
benefits followed, the good bestowed during the few 
weeks of spring would have compensated for the 
labor and cost. This institution continued in ope- 
ration for about eighteen months, during which time 
some hundreds of patients were provided for. The 
prejudices of parents, which had been foreseen, were 
found to exist, but disappeared with the benefits 
received ; and the whole experiment proved conclu- 
sively that such an institution may be sustained in 
this community with vast benefit to a large class of 
the suffering ; and it is hoped that it may one day 
lead to an establishment of the kind on a larger scale, 
and with a more extensive organization and means of 
usefulness. In this experiment, it was found, from 
the limited number of beds, that the cost of each 
patient was much larger than if four times the 
number had been provided for, and so large that Mr. 
Lawrence decided that the same amount of money 
could be made to afford relief to much larger numbers 
of the same class of sufferers applied in some other 
way. He was a constant visitor at the Infirmary, 

23 



178 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

and took a deep interest in many of the patients, 
whose varied history had been recited to him ; and in 
after-years, as he passed through the streets, many an 
eye would brighten as it caught a glimpse of the kind 
friend who had whispered words of consolation and 
hope in the lonely hours of sickness. 



179 



CHAPTER XXIY. 



CAPT. A. S. McKENZIE. — DIARY. — AID TO IRELAND. — 
MADAME PRESCOTT. — SIR WILLIAM COLEBROOKE. 



To Capt. Alexander Slidell McKenzie, U. S. N. 

"Nov. 2, 1846. 

" My dear Sir, — I was exceedingly gratified by your 
kind remembrance of me, a few days since, in sending me 
a copy of your ' Life of Decatur,' which, to its merits as a 
biography, will have the charm of bringing before me my 
old friend Bainbridge, and the writer, whom I have felt a 
strong interest in ever since reading his ' Year in Spain ; ' 
for my son resided in the same family soon after you left, 
and made me acquainted with you before I had seen you. 
I am a ' minute-man ' in life, but, while I remain here, shall 
always be glad to take you by the hand when you visit us. 
Whether we meet here is of less importance than that our 
work be done, and be said by the Master to be well done, 
when called off. Respectfully and faithfully yours, 

" A. L." 

" Dec. 17. — Thirty-nine years have passed my first 
entry in this book ; and, in reviewing this period, I have 
abundant reason to bless God for his great mercies, and 
especially for continuing us foiir brothers, engaged as we 
have been in business, an unbroken band to this day, and 



180 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

for the success attending our labors. We have been blessed 
more than most men, and have the power, by our right use 
of these blessings, of benefiting our fellow-men. God grant 
that the spirits of our parents may be cheered in their 
heavenly home by our doing the work here that we ought to 
do ! To my descendants I commend this memorial, with the 
prayer that they may each of them be better than I am.". . . 
" Fifteen years hence, and the chief interest in all of us 
will be found in our Mount Auburn enclosure ; and we 
ought to look well to the comment." 

As an expression of the feeling here referred to, he 
purchased a gold snuff-box of beautiful workmanship, 
and forwarded it to his youngest brother, then a 
resident of Lowell, with the following inscription 
engraven upon it : — 

*' Besou) how Good and how Pieabant it is for Beethben to dwell together 
IN Unity! " 

TO SAMUEL LAWRENCE, 

FKOM HIS BROTHER AMOS. 

" Dec. 19. — Rode to-day to the Asylum for the Blind 
with Major Arthur Lawrence, of the Rifle Brigade, British 
Army, and had a very interesting vi^t. Dr. Howe very 
attentive ; and Laura Bridgman and Oliver Caswell both 
appeared well." 

" Dec. 27. — Rev. Mr. Rogers said to-day, ' Gold is not 
the coin of heaven : if it had been, Christ would have been 
rich ; but he was a poor man.' " 

" .Jan. 1, 1847. — In July last, I had spent the advance of 
my income, but am thankful now to be able to state the 
case differently, being in the right of ample means to be a 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 181 

messenger of comfort to the needy. My income the last 
six months has exceeded thirty-eight thousand dollars ; my 
outgoes have exceeded twelve thousand ; so that the over- 
spending in the first six months is nearly made up. The 
income of the year 1846 has been upwards of seventy-six 
thousand dollars ; the outgoes have been upwards of seventy- 
seven thousand dollars ; in addition to which, N. has distri- 
buted upwards of three thousand from her own hand. God 
grant us the right spirit in its use ! 

" Note. — The outgoes for all objects in the last five 
years have been rather more than three hundred and twenty 
thousand dollars." 

From the various entries quoted, it will be seen 
that Mr. Lawrence's means for charitable distribution 
varied considerably in amount from year to year. To 
explain this difference, it may not be amiss to state 
here, that he had, from the first efforts to establish 
home manufactures in New England, taken a deep 
interest in their success, and had consequently in- 
vested a large proportion of his property in the 
various manufacturing corporations which had been 
built up in Lowell and other towns in Massachusetts 
and New Hampshire. The great fluctuations in this 
department of industry are known to every one ; for, 
while the returns of one year would be ample, those 
of the next year would, from embarrassments in the 
commercial world, or from some other cause, be little 
or nothing. 

" Jan. 8. — T. E. and S. J., two Englishmen in the 
employ of J. C, mended our pump to-day. I gave them 



182 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

some books and a word of counsel, and hope to observe their 
progress. 

" Feb. 15. — T. J. called, and is to embark to-morrow, on 
his way to the war in Mexico. He asked me to give him 
money to buy a pistol, which I declined, as I could not wish 
them success in Mexico ; but gave him some books, a Bible, 
and good counsel." 

During the month of February, an appeal was made 
to the citizens of Boston in behalf of the famished 
population of Ireland, and resulted in the sending to 
that country a large quantity of food and clothing. 
Mr. Lawrence contributed himself towards that effort, 
and, as was often the case, endeavored to interest others 
equally with himself On the 24th of that month, 
he addressed a note to J. A. Stearns, Esq., Principal 
of the Mather School, at South Boston, for the pupils 
of his school composing the Lawrence Association. 
This Association, comprising a large number of boys 
and girls, had been formed for moral and intellectual 
improvement, and had been named in honor of Mr. 
Lawrence, who had, from its commencement, taken a 
deep interest in its success, and had often contributed 
books and money when needed. 

" Wednesday, March 2. 
".My Friends, — The value of the offering to suffering 
Ireland from our city will be enhanced by the numbers con- 
tributing, as the offering will do more good as an expression 
of sympathy than as a matter of relief. The spirit of dear 
R. seems to speaks through your * Oak Leaf,' * and to say, 
* A little newspaper published by the Association. 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 183 

' Let all who will of the Association subscribe a half-dollar 
each, and all others a quarter each, for their suffering breth- 
ren, and children of a common Father.' A. L. 

" P. S. — The purses were presents to me, and must be 
returned. One of them from the lady of Sir John Strachan, 
herself a descendant of one of our Boston girls ; the two 
open-work ones from ladies in this city. Take from them 
what is required, and return the balance, if any is left. If 
more is required, let me know, as I do not know the amount 
in the purses. A. L." 

One hundred and two members of the Association, 
and four hundred and thirty-eight other members of 
the school, in all five hundred and forty, availed them- 
selves of the privilege thus ofiered them, and contri- 
buted the sum of one hundred and sixty dollars 
towards the object. 

At the church in Brattle Street, a collection was 
taken in aid of the same object ; and, among other 
contributions, was a twenty-dollar bill, with the fol- 
lowing attached to it, probably by Mr. Lawrence : — 

" A ship of war to carry bread to the hungry and suffering, 
instead of powder and ball to inflict more suffering on our 
brethren, — children of the same Father, — is as it should 
oe ; and this is in aid of the plan." 

Among the most respected and valued friends of 
Mr. Lawrence was the venerable Madame Prescott, 
widow of the late Judge William Prescott, and 
mother of the distinguished historian of " Ferdinand 
and Isabella." Years seemed rather to quicken her 



184 niARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

naturally waiin sympathies for the distresses of 
others ; and, at the age of more than fourscore, she 
was to be daUy seen on foot in our streets, actively 
engaged upon her errands of mercy. Mr. Lawrence 
had, the year before, found a small volume, entitled 
the " Comforts of Old Age," by Sir Thomas Bernard ; 
and had sent it to several of his friends, principally 
those in advanced age, asking for some record of their 
experience. His note to Madame Prescott on this 
subject was as follows : — 

"March 8, 1847. 
" Dear Madame Prescott, — I have been a long time 
anxious to receive a favor from you, and have felt diffident 
in asking it ; but am now at the required state of resolution. 
The book I send you is so much in character with your own 
life, that my grandchildren, who love you, will read to their 
grandchildren your words, written by your own hand in this 
book, if vou will but place them there. I must beg you, my 
excellent friend, to believe that I am desirous of securing for 
my descendants some of your precious "encouragements in the 
discipline of life. Your friend, Amos Lawrence." 

The volume was retm-ned with the following re- 
cord : — 

"Boston, March 10, 1847. 
" My dear Sir, — You ask me what are the comforts of 
old age. I answer, the retrospection of a well-spent life. 
The man who devotes himself to the cause of humanity, who 
clothes the naked, feeds the hungry, soothes the sorrows of 
the afflicted, and comforts the mourner ; whom each rising 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 185 

sun finds in the contemplation of some good deed, and each 
night closes with the assurance that it has been performed, 
— surely such a life must be the comfort of an old age. 
But where shall we find such a man ? May I not be per- 
mitted to apply the character to my highly valued and 
respected friend, whose chai'ities are boundless, and who 
daily dispenses blessings to all around him ? May the endur- 
ing oak be emblematical of the continuance of your life ! I 
depend much upon accompanying you to Mount Auburn, 
and to visit the spot which contains the precious relics of 
him whose life it is sweet to contemplate, and whose death 
has taught us how a Chi'istian should die. The perusal of 
this little volume has increased my veneration and friendship 
for its owner. Respectfully and aflfectionately, 

" C. G. Prescott." 

"Mem. by A. L., May 20, 1850. — Madame P., now 
much passed fourscore years of age (born Aug. 1, 1767), is 
as bright and active in body and mind as most ladies of 

fifty." 

" April 10. — Mrs. T. called to ask aid for a poor widow, 
which I declined, by telling her I did not hear or read peo- 
ple's stories from necessity, and I could not inquire this even- 
ing. She claims to be acquainted with Rev. Mr. and 

Rev. Mr. . She gave me a severe lecture, and berated 

me soundly. 

" April 19. — Mrs. C, of Lowell, asks me to loan her 
three hundred dollars to furnish a boarding-house for twelve 
young ladies at S., which I decHned by mail this morn- 
ing." 

In reply to Sir William Colebrooke, Governor of 
New Brunswick, who requested Mr. Lawrence to 



186 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

notify certain poor people in the neighborhood of Bos- 
ton that their deposits in the Frederickstown Sa\ings' 
Bank, which had been previously withheld, would be 
paid by means of an appropriation for the purpose 
recently made by the Provincial Assembly, he 
writes : — 

"Boston, April 26, 1847. 
" My dear Sir William, — Your kind letter of the Sth 
instant reached me on the 13th, and is most welcome and 
grateful, in making me the medium of so much solid comfort 
to the numerous people whose eai-nings are thus restored to 
them through your unceasing and faithful labors. May 
God reward you, and enable you to enjoy through life the 
elevated satisfaction that follows such good works to those 
who can give you nothing but their prayers ! It is alike 
creditable to your Provincial Government, and those true 
principles which are the best riches of all free governments ; 
and I hope may exercise some good influence upon our State 
Governments, which have done injustice to many poor per- 
sons who have given credit to their promises. I have caused 
your notice to be scattered broadcast, and trust that all who 
have any interest in the Frederickstown Savings' Bank will 
know that their money and interest are ready for them. 
Pray present me most affectionately to Lady Colebrooke and 
your daughters ; and assure her we shall take more comfort 
than ever in showing her over our beautiful hills, that have 
health and joy in every breeze. My own health continues 
as good as when you were last here ; and my family (who 
have not been taken hence) seem devoted to my comfort. 
, What reason have we for devout thanksgiving, that our two 
countries are not at swords' points, and that the true feel- 
ing of our common ancestry is now sweeping over our 
land ! We are in deep disgrace on account of this wicked 



DIARY AND COKRESPONDENCE. 187 

Mexican business. What the end is to be can only be 
known to Infinite Wisdom ; but one thing is certain, — no 
good can come to us from it. 

" Again I pray you to be assured of my highest respect 
and regard, and am very faithfully yours, 

" Amos Lawrence." 



188 



CHAPTEE XXY. 



ilR. LAWRENCE AS AN APPLICANT. — LETTERS. — DIARY. — 
PRAYER AND MEDITATIONS. — LIBERALITY TO A CREDI- 
TOR. — LETTERS. 



It was not uncommon for Mr. Lawrence, when a 
good work was in progress, to give not only his own 
means, but to lend a helping hand by soliciting con- 
tributions from others. The following note, addressed 
to a wealthy bachelor, is a specimen : — 

" Boston, June 11, 1847. 
" My dear Sir, — You will be surprised at this letter, 
coming as it does as a first ; but I know, from my experience 
of your skill and talents as a business man, how pleasant it 
is to you to make good bargains and safe investments ; and, 
although you are a bachelor, the early business habits you 
acquired are marked, and are to be carried forward till the 
footing up of the account, and the trial-balance presented to 
the Master at his coming. As I said before, you like safe 
investments, that shall be returned fourfold, if such can be 
,made. Now, I am free to say to you, I know of such an 
one ; and the promisor is a more secure one than that of 
A. & A., Uncle Sam, the old Bay State, or bonds and mort- 
gages in your own neighborhood. You ask. Then why not 



DIAEY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 189 

take it yourself ? I answer. Because I have invested in 
advance in the same sort of stock in other quarters, but am 
willing to give my guaranty that you shall be satisfied that 
it is all I represent when you make your final settlement. 
It is this : Amherst College you know all about ; and that is 
now in especial need of new instructors, and increased funds 
for their support. Twenty thousand dollars from you will 
place it on high ground, give a name to a professorship, make 
you feel happier and richer than you ever did in your life. 
What say you ? will you do it ? The respect of good men 
will be of more value to you through your remaining days 
than any amount of increase, even if as vast as Girard's or 
Astor's. As I am a mere looker-on, you will take this, as 
I design it, as an expression of good-will to the college, no 
less than to you." 

" Mem. by A. L. — Received an answer on the 16th, 
very good and kind, from Mr. ." 

In addition to the " very good answer," Mr. Law- 
rence had soon after the gratification of knowing that 
the application had been successful, and the necessary 
sum contributed by his correspondent. 

About the same date, he writes to his friend, Pro- 
fessor Packard, of Bowdoin College, as follows : — 

" Your visit to us the last week has opened new views 
and visions, that are better described in the last chapter of 
Revelations than in any account I can give. Bowdoin Col- 
lege is connected with all that is near and dear to President 
Appleton, — not only those on the stage of action with him, 
but all who came after, embracing in this latter class your 
own loved ones, who may continue to exercise an important 



190 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

agency in making the college what the good man, in his 
lifetime, strove to make it. The love, veneration, and respect 
my dear wife had for him makes her feel a peculiar pleasure 
in doing for the college what would have cheered and com- 
forted him so much had he lived till this time. The thousand 
dollars handed to you is a first payment of four thousand that 
she will give to the college in aid of the fund now in pro- 
gress of collection ; and she directs that the Lawrence 
Academy, at Groton, may be allowed to send one scholar 
from their school each year to Bowdoin College, to he 
carried through the four years without charge for instruc- 
tion ; and that, whenever the trustees of the academy do 
not supply a pupil, the college may fill the place. I will 
hold myself responsible to make good Mrs. Lawrence's 
intentions, should she be deprived in any way of this privi- 
lege before the work is done." 

Early in the summer of this year, the Hon. Abbott 
Lawrence made his mimificent donation of fifty thou- 
sand dollars to Harvard College, for the pm-pose of 
founding what was afterwards called, in honor of the 
donor, the Lawrence Scientific School. After reading 
the letter accompanying this donation, Mr. Lawrence 
addressed to his brother the following : — 

" Wednesday morning, June 9, 1847. 
" Dear Brother Abbott, — I hardly dare trust myself to 
speak what I feel, and therefore write a word to say that I 
thank God I am spared to this day to see accomplished by 
one so near and dear to me this last best work ever done 
by one of our name, which will prove a better title to true 
nobility than any from the potentates of the world. It is 
more honorable, and more to be coveted, than the highest 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 191 

political station in our country, purchased as these stations 
often are by time-serving. It is to impress on unborn 
millions the great truth that our talents ai'e trusts committed 
to us for use, and to be accounted for when the Master calls. 
This magnificent plan is the great thing that you will see 
carried out, if your life is spared ; and you may well cherish 
it as the thing nearest your heart. It enriches your descend- 
ants in a way that mere money never can do, and is a better 
investment than any one you have ever made. 

" Your affectionate brother Amos. 

" To Abbott Laweence." 

To a friend he writes, soon after : — 

" This noble plan is worthy of him ; and I can say truly 
to you, that I feel enlarged by his doing it. Instead of our 
sons' going to France and other foreign lands for instruction, 
here will be a place, second to no other on earth, for such 
teaching as our country stands now in absolute need of. 
Here, at this moment, it is not in the power of the great 
railroad companies to secure a competent engineer to carry 
forward their work, so much are the services of such men 
in demand." 

" B08TON, June 18, 1847. 
" Dear Partners, — Please pass to the credit of my friend, 
the Rev. Mark Hopkins, two thousand dollars, to pay for 
four scholarships at Williams College, to be used through 
all time by the Trustees of Lawrence Academy in Groton. 
The said trustees, or their representatives, may send and 
keep in college foirr pupils from the academy, without any 
charge for tuition ; and, whenever they omit or decline 
keeping up their full number, the government or the proper 
authorities of the college are authoriaed to fill the vacancy 



192 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

or vacancies from their own college pupils. Charge the 
same to my account. A. L. 

" To A. & A. L. & Co." 

To an esteemed clergyman, who had addressed him 
a letter in behalf of a church in a distant city, Mr. 
Lawrence writes as follows : — 

"Boston, June 11, 1847. 
" My Friend, — I have your letter of yesterday ; and, in 
reply, I offer it as my opinion, that the Unitarianism growing 
up among us the few years past has so much philosophy as 
to endanger the Christian character of our denomination, 
and to make us mere rationalists of the German school, 
which I dread more than any thing in the way of religious 

progress. The chiuxh at may be of use in spreading 

Christianity ; but it may also be a reproval to it. I do not 
feel sufficient confidence in it to give money to keep life in 
it until I see evidence of some of the conservative influences 
that my own beloved and honored pastor is calling back 
among us. Your well-wisher and friend, 

"A. L. 

* " P. S. — I fully agree in the opinion that is an 

important point for the dissemination of truth ; and, before 
giving aid, I must know the man before I help support the 
minister, having small confidence in the teachings of many 
who enjoy considerable reputation as teachers of righteous- 
ness. I may have expressed doubts and fears that may not 
seem well founded ; but I feel them." 

" T. G., representing himself a member of College, 

writes me a letter, received this morning, asking me to loan 
him twenty dollars ; which letter I return to him, and 



DIARY AND COERESPONDENCE. 193 

decline the loan. He paid no postage ; a silly fellow, I 
think." 

The following entry in his diary will give some 
idea of Mr. Lawrence's exactness in his daily busi- 
ness : — 

" Saturday, July 24, 1847. — Enclosed in a note to the 

Rev. , of , a fifty-dollar bank-note, of the 

Atlantic Bank, No. 93, dated Jan. 1, 1846, payable to 
George William Dodd ; letter A at each end of the bill, and 
A. P. P. in blue ink, in my writing, at the top. Sent the 
letter to the post-office by coachman, and paid the postage ; 
he keeping a memorandum of his having delivered it, and 
paid for it. A. L." 

" Sept. 16, 1847, Sabbath-day. — ' most blessed Lord 
and Saviour; thou who didst, by thy precious death and 
burial, take away the sting of death and the darkness of the 
gi'ave ! grant unto me the precious fruit of this holy triumph 
of thine, and be my guide both in life and in death. In thy 
name will I lay me down in peace and rest ; for thou, 
Lord, makest me to dwell in safety I Enlighten, Lord ! 
the eyes of my understanding, that I may not sleep the sleep 
of death. Into thy hands I commend my spirit ; for thou 
hast redeemed me, O thou covenant-keeping God ! Bless 
and preserve me, therefore, both now and for ever ! Amen.' 

"These are suitable thoughts and aspirations, such as 
every Christian may profitably indulge on retiring each night. 
His bed should remind him of his grave ; and, as the day 
past brings him so much nearer to it, the appearance, when 
summoned hence, should be the point most distinctly before 
him. If he pass on with the ' Well done,' no time can be 
amiss when called up. God ! grant me to be ever ready ; 
and, by thy blessing and thy mercy, grant me to be allowed 
25 



194 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

to join company with those loved and precious ones -whom I 
feel entirely assured are at thy right hand, then to be no 
more separated ! Amos Lawrence. 

" Sept. 17. — Professor , of the Baptist College in 

, has called, to whom I shall give a parcel of books for 

the use of the college, and also a good word, which I hope 
will make him remember in whose service he is engaged. 

" Sept. 18. — Delivered him about two hundred and fifty 
volumes, various ,• all of value to him and his college, he 
said. He is a young man (under thirty years) and a minis- 
ter." 

The following note and memorandum by Mr. Law- 
rence will show the manner in which he dealt with 
an old debtor : — 

"To Mr. G. 
" My dear Sir, — If you have any mode by which I can 
have the pleasure of receiving your note and interest, amount- 
ing to $2,300, to be vested by me for the benefit of your 
wife, I shall be pleased to do it, having long since deter- 
mined to appropriate this money, whenever received, in this 
way. Yours truly, A. L. 

" For himself and Brother A." 

" Mem. — Mr. was an invalid, and confined to his 

hbuse at that period, and sent for me to call and see him. I 
did so, and he seemed much affected by my ofier ; but told 
me he was in better circumstances than I had supposed him, 
and declined the proffered aid. The information thus given 
me in this last interview was most welcome : from that time, 
I never mentioned his debt. After his decease, it was paid 
by his sons ; and the family has been prosperous since. I 
spent the money for other persons in need, and am rejoiced 
that all his are so comfortable." 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 1 95 

Those readers who can look back a few years will 
recall to memory the manly form, and fine, open coun- 
tenance, of William L. Green, who was so suddenly 
cut off at the very threshold of what promised to be 
an honorable and useful career. He had come to Bos- 
ton from his native town of Groton ; and, after serv- 
ing an apprenticeship, had entered upon a successful 
business. He had endeared himself to a large circle 
of friends, and possessed such qualities of mind and 
heart as had made him the stay and hope of his 
parents in their declining years. 

Upon hearing of the death of this nephew, Mr. 
Lawrence addressed to his parents the following letter 
of sympathy : — 

" Boston, Oct. 22, 1847. 
" Dear Brother and Sister, — God speaks to us through 
the rustling of the leaves no less distinctly than in the voice 
of the whirlwind and the storm ; and it is now our busi- 
ness and our privilege to look at him and to him for the 
lesson of yesterday. Dear W., as he parted from me the 
sabbath noon before the last, looked the embodiment of 
health, long hfe, and happiness. Now, that noble figure, 
face, expression, and loved spirit, which lightened his path, 
is no longer among us to be in danger of injury from our 
yielding him that which belongs to God only. Were 
we not liable, dear brother and sister, to interrupt those 
communings which God calls us to with himself? He 
is our merciful Father, and does for us what he sees is best ; 
and, if we receive his teachings, however dark they may 
appear to us at present, all will be made clear at the right 
time. Your precious treasure is secured, I trust, and will 



196 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

prove an increased attraction to you to follow ; and it seems 
to me that our children are uniting in theii- joyful meeting 
in heaven. May we see in this event, more clearly than 
ever, where we are to look for direction, instruction, and 
support ! May we be ready when called ! So prays your 
affectionate and afflicted brother, A. L." 

To a friend he writes, Dec. 27 : — 

" In our domestic relations, we are all as we could desire, 
save the individual case of my brother William, who is barely 
remaining this side Jordan, and in a happy state, I trust, to 
pass over. For a number of days, we have supposed each 
might be the last ; but he may continue for some days, or 
possibly weeks. Death strikes right and left, and takes from 
our midst the long-honored and beloved, in their maturity. 
Dr. Codman and Judge Hubbard are both to be buried to-day ; 
two men whose places will not soon be filled, I fear. Only 
last Tuesday, in my ride with good Dr. Sharp, we agreed to 
call and pay our respects to Dr. C. on Thursday ; but, on 
that morning, learned that he was dead. On Thursday, 
Judge Hubb'ard rode out, and transacted legal business as a 
magistrate ; in the evening went to bed as usual ; in the 
night-time was turned over in bed, as he requested to be, 
and ceased to breathe. How could a good man pass over 
Jdrdan more triumphantly and gloriously ? " 

The reader will not fail to note the coincidence, 
that, almost exactly five years later, Mr. Lawrence 
was summoned to " pass over " in the same manner, 
which, from the expression used, seems to have been 
to him so desirable ; though his own departure was 
still more sudden and striking. 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 197 

To A. Physician. 

" Sabbath evening, seven o'clock. 

" Dear , — I have been reading to the last 

hour, beginning at the second chapter of Matthew, and so on 
in course. Please look at the fourth chapter, and the latter 
part of the twenty-third verse, and I think you will need no 
apology for doing what you do, with such instruction. 
Christ's example, no less than his precepts, are designed to 
be practically useful to the whole family of man ; and I feel 
humbled and grieved that I have not followed him better, 
and preached better by all the motives he has thus spread out. 
I say, then, to you and yours, God bless you in your good 
work, and make you a worthy follower of the Beloved ! 

"A. L." 



198 



CHAPTEE XXVI. 



REFLECTIONS. — VIEWS ON HOLDING OFFICE. — LETTERS. — 
CAPTAIN A. SLIDELL McKENZIE. — DEATH OF BROTHER 
AND OF HON. J. MASON. 



" Jan. 1, 1848. ■ — In reviewing the scenes and the business of 
the past year, I have continued evidence of that mercy which 
a Father bestows on his children, and a louder call to yield 
more fully than I ever yet have done to the teachings he 
designs. Many things that seem dark, of which the reasons 
are not understood, will be made clear at the right time. It 
is manifest that my stewardship is not so far well done as to 
permit me tq fold my arms and feel easy. No : my life is 
spai-ed for more work. May its every day be marked by 
some token that shall meet thine approval, when the final 
call shall come ! " 

' To Pbesident Hopkins. 

"Boston, March 9. 
"This religious awakening among your college students 
is among the blessings that our Father vouchsafes to his ser- 
vants who labor faithfully in their work ; and I can see his 
hand as plainly in it as though it was thrust before my face 
as I write this sentence. Let us, then, bless his holy name, 
and thank him, as disciples and followers of Christ the 
Beloved ; and urge upon these young men to come forward. 



DIAEY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 199 

as doves to their windows. If my life and my trusteeship 
have been in any manner instrumental in this good work in 
your college, it will be matter of grateful thanksgiving while 
I live. Mrs. L. and myself both felt our hearts drawn out 
to you as we read your letter ; and we commend you, and 
the good work of guiding these interesting young Christians 
in the ways and the works that lead to that blessed home to 
which our loved ones have been called, and to which we 
hope to be welcomed. To his grace and guidance we com- 
mend all things touching this onward and upward movement. 
I have been under the smarting-rod a few days within the 
past fortnight. Severe pain took all my courage and light- 
heartedness out of me, and made me a sorry companion; 
and my friends, seeing me in my every-day dress, would 
hardly know me in this sombre garb. Again, dear friend, I 
bid you God-speed in the good work ; and, at last, may you 
receive the ' Well done ' promised to the faithful ! " 

In the Presidential campaign of 1848, the Hon. 
Abbott Lawrence was made a prominent candidate of 
the Whig party for the Vice-Presidency ; and, in the 
convention which assembled at Philadelphia in June, 
was voted for, and received but one vote short of that 
which would have secured the nomination. Mr. Fill- 
more, it will be recollected, was the successful candi- 
date. During the canvas, a gentleman, editing a 
newspaper which strongly advocated the nomination 
of Taylor and Lawrence, addressed a very courteous 
letter to Mr. Amos Lawrence, asking for aid in sup- 
porting this movement, which he supposed he would 
of course be deeply interested in. The reply is given 



200 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

here, as an illustration of his views in regard to hold- 
ing high political office : — 

" Dear Sir, — In reply to yours, this moment handed me, 
I state that my income is so reduced, thus far, this year, that I 
am compelled to use prudence in the expenditure of money, 
and must therefore decline making the loan. If my vote 
would make my brother Vice-President, I would not give 
it, as I think it lowering his good name to accept office of 
any sort, by employing such means as are now needful to get 
votes. I hope ' Old Zack ' will be President. 

" Eespectfully youi-s, A. L." 



To President Hopkins he writes, AprU 15 : — 

" What should we do, if the Bible* were not the founda- 
tion of our system of self-government ? and what will become 
of us, when we wilfully and wickedly cast it behind us ? 
We have all more than common reason to pray, in the depths 
of our sins, God be merciful to us sinners. The efforts made 
to lessen respect for it and confidence in it will bring to its 
rescue multitudes who otherwise would not have learned 
how much they owe it. The 'Age of KeasJn,' fifty years 
ag'o, told, on the whole, in advancing truth, by bringing to 
its support the best minds of Christendom. I hope it may 
be so now. This is a theme for your head and heart and 
pen. No man in New England can make a deeper mai-k. 
What say ye? The Bible is our great charter, and does 
, more than all others, written or unwritten." 



* In looking over the list of Life Directors of the American Bible Society, made 
each bj the payment of one hundred and fifty dollars each, there are found at least 
ten who are known to have been constituted by Mr. Lawience. 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 201 

" W. C. -writes from N., asking rae to loan him $3,000 to 
buy a fai"m, and to improve his health and mind ; stating 
that he is a cripple, but wants to do something for the 
world." 

" That man may last, but never lives, 
Who much receives, but nothing gives, 
Whom none can love, whom none can thank, 
Creation's blot, creation's blank." 

To President Hopkins. 

"Boston, June 12, 1848. 
" My dear Friend, — Only think what changes a few 
weeks have produced in Europe, and the probable effects 
upon this country. It seems now certain that vast numbers 
will emigrate here, rich and poor, from the continent and 
from England. Even the middle classes in England are at 
this moment apprehensive that their glory has passed the 
upper line, and is on the wane, and that they must leave for 
a new home. They cannot pay the interest on their forty 
hundred million dollars' debt, with the expenses of royalty. 
The question for us is. How shall we treat them ? It is cer- 
tain that foreigners will come here. We have land enough 
for them, but have not the needful discipline to make them 
safe associates in maintaining our system of government. 
Virtue and intelligence are our platform ; but the base pas- 
sions of our country have been ministered to so abundantly 
by unscrupulous politicians, that our moral sense has been 
blunted ; and these poor, ignorant foreigners are brought 
into use for selfish purposes, and the prospects for the future 
are appalling. Yet a ray of light has just broken in upon 
us by the nomination of General Taylor for President ; and 
my belief is he is the best man for the place who can be 
named, with any prospect of success. He is not a politician, 
but a plain, straight-forward, honest man, anxious to do his 



202 DIARY AND CORRESPOKDENCE. 

duty in all his relations. As to my brother's nomination for 
Vice-President, I am thankful they did not make it in con- 
vention : he is in a higher position before the country than 
he would be if chosen Vice-President. His course has been 
elevated and magnanimous in this matter ; for he might, by 
his personal influence and efforts, have received the nomina- 
tion. 

"Additional. — It is now almost two, p.m., and I have 
but just returned fiom ISIount Auburn. The visit has been 
deeply interesting, on many accounts, and has almost unfitted 
me to finish this letter. However, there is nothing in the 
visit but what ought to make me thankful that my treasures, 
though removed, are secured ; and, if my poor efforts can 
bring me again into their society through the blessed Sa- 
viour, I ought not to allow this gush of feeling to unman 
me." 

A few days later, he writes to the same tiiend : — 

" I have not as yet heard of the examination of yesterday 
at the Lawrence Academy, which son A. A. attended, but 
hope for a good report. In truth, I fepl as if that school and 
your college are to go hand in hand in making whole men for 
generations to come. There is a pleasant vision which opens 
to me when I look forward to the characters that the aca- 
demy and the college are to send forth for the next hundred 
years. I bless God for my old home, and the great elm in 
front, which has a teaching and a significance that I shall 
endeavor to make use of in training ray grandchildren and 
dear ones of my family connection. How important, then, 
that our places of education be sustained, as supplying the 
pure and living streams that shall irrigate every hill and val- 
ley of this vast empire, and train men to know and do their 
duty ! I will not quarrel with a man's Presbyterian, Episcd* 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 203 

pal, or Baptist creed, so be he will act the part of a good 
soldier of Christ ; for I verily believe great multitudes, of all 
creeds, desire to serve him faithfully." 

" Aug. 23. — T. G. sent me a paper this morning, having 
many names on it, with a polite note. The paper I returned 
without reading ; telling him I did not read such, or hear 
stories, and must be excused. He took the answer in high 
dudgeon, and sent another note, saying he had mistaken me, 
and desired that his first note should be returned. I wrote 
upon it that I lived by the day and hour, an invalid, and, for 
two years, had adopted this course, and had treated bishops, 
clergymen, and laymen with the fewest words ; that I 
intended no disrespect, and begged his pardon if I had done 
any thing wrong. I also told him this course was urged 
upon me by my medical adviser ; but, with all my care, 
there is now an average of six applications a day through 
the year." 

Mr. Lawrence had, many years previous to this 
date, formed an acquaintance with Capt. Slidell 
McKenzie, of the United States Navy, which had 
been continued, and was a source of mutual pleasure. 
Among other relics in the possession of the writer 
is a cane of palm-wood, presented by Capt. McKenzie, 
on his retiu-n from Mexico as commander of the 
United States Steamship " Mississippi," to Mr. Law- 
rence, who had caused to be engraven upon it, on a 
silver plate, the following inscription : — 

ALEXANDER SLIDELL McKENZIE TO AMOS LAWRENCE. 

1845. 

PALM-WOOD FROM THE BANKS OF THE TOBASCO RFVER. 

PROM THE UNITED STATES NAVAL COMMANDER WHO WAS NOT AFEAID TO DO HIS DUTY WHEN LIFE 
WAS REQUIRED AT THE YARD-ARM. 



204 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

The latter part of the inscription is in allusion 
to the part which Capt. McKenzie felt obliged to 
take in the mutiny on board the United States Brig 
" Somers " in 184-. 

On Sept. 15, he thus notices the death of that 
officer in his diary : — 

" This morning's newspapers give the intelligence that 
the excellent and accomplished Capt. McKenzie died at Sing 
Sing, N. Y., two days ago. He fell from his horse by an 
affection of the heart, and died almost instantly. Thus has 
departed a man whom I esteemed as among the best and 
purest I am acquainted with, and whose character should be 
a treasure for his family and the nation. I think him a 
model oiEcer and a good Christian." 



"Oct. 11.— 

CANADIAN BOAT-SONG. 

' Faintly, as tolls the evening chime, 
Our voices keep tune, and our oars keep time ; 
Soon as the woods on shore look dim. 
We'll sing at St. Ann's our parting hymn. 
Row, brothers, row : the stream runs fast, 
The rapids are near, and dayhght's past.' 

I first heard this song sung and played on the piano by 

, afterwards IMrs. , at her house In Street, in 

1809. The song rang in my ears sweetly for weeks, as 1 
was taken down with fever the next morning. I never think 
of it but with delight." 

" Oct. 15. — My brother William died on Saturday, Oct. 
14, at 3, p. M., in the sixty-sixth year of his age ; and my 
brother Mason died only five hours afterwards, in his 



DIARY AND CORKESPONDENCE. 205 

eighty-first yeax, — within three doors of each other. Both 
were very dear to me in life, and both are very dear to me 
in death ; and, in God's good time, I trust that I shall meet 
them again, not subject to the ills and changes of my present 
abode." 

In a letter of the same date to a friend, he 

says : — 

" My letter of last Tuesday will have prepared you for 
the sad intelligence in this. Brother William continued 
without much suffering or consciousness till two o'clock 
yesterday, and then ceased breathing, without a groan. Yes- 
terday morning, the hand of death was manifestly upon 
Brother Mason, who was conscious to objects around, and 
requested C. to pray with him ; and, when asked if he 
understood what was said, answered, 'Yes,' and expressed 
by words and signs his wants and feelings. He continued 
in a quiet, humble, and hopeful frame, we judge, until just 
eight o'clock, when, with a single gasp and a slight noise, 
his mighty spirit passed out of its immense citadel of clay, 
to join the throng of the loved ones gone before. Brother 
W. was in his 66th year. Brother M. in his 81st; and both 
were such men as we need, true as steel in all good works 
and words. Mr. M. was never sick a day to disable him 
from attending to his professional and public duties in fifty 
years, and, until within a short time, never confined a day to 
his house by illness. On the last Sunday evening, I passed 
a most refreshing half-hour with him. He appeared as well 
as he has done for a year; inquired very particularly into 
Brother W.'s state ; expressed the opinion that his own time 
was near at hand, and a hope that he might be taken without 
losing his mental and bodily powers. He remarked that 
protracted old age, after the loss of power to give and receive 



206 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

comfort, was not to be desired. He has often expressed to 
me the hope that he should be taken just as he has been. 
Have we not reason to praise and bless God in taking, no 
less than in sparing, these honored and loved ones ? " 



207 



CHAPTER XXVII. 



SYSTEM EST ACCOUNTS. — LETTER FROM PROF. STUART. — 
LETTERS. — DIARY. — FATHER MATTHEW. — DR. HAMIL- 
TON. 



" Jan. 1, 1849. — The habit of keeping an account of my 
expenditures for objects other than my family, and for 
strictly legal calls, I have found exceedingly convenient and 
satisfactory ; as I have been sometimes encouraged, by look- 
ing back to some entry of aid to a needy institution or 
individual, to do twice as much for some other needy insti- 
tution or individual. I can truly say, that I deem these 
outlays my best, and would not, if I could by a wish, 
have any of them back again. I adopted the practice, ten 
years ago, of spending my income. My outgoes since the 
1st of January, 1842, have been upwards of four hundred 
thousand dollars ; and my property on the first of this year 
1849 is as great as on Jan. 1, 1842. The more I give, the 
more I have, and do most devoutly and heartily pray God 
that I may be faithful in the use of the good things entrusted 
to me, and that I may, at last, be received among the faithful 
stewards with the ' Well done ' promised, and thus secure 
what is beyond price, compared with any thing earthly, — 
that heaven we all hope for." 

" Jan. 2. — Yesterday, Peter C. Brooks died, aged eighty- 



208 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

two ; a man who has minded his own business through life, 
and from a poor boy became the richest man in the city. I 
honor him as an honest man." 

From Phofessoe Stuaet, of Andovek. 

" Andoter, Jan. 23, 1849. 
" My dear Sir, — Soon after my daughter's return from 
Boston, I received a garment exceedingly appropriate to the 
severe cold to which I am daily exposed in my rides. Many, 
many heaity thanks for yoxir kindness ! To me the aiticle 
in question is of peculiar •alue. The cold can hardly pene- 
trate beneath such a garment. God has blessed you with 
wealth ; but he has given you a richer blessing still ; that 
is, a heart overflowing with kindness to your fellow-beings, 
and a willingness to do good to all as you have opportunity. 
I accept, with warm emotions of gratitude and thankfulness, 
the kindness you have done to me. I would not exchange 
your gift for a large lump of the California gold. Be 
assured you have my fervent prayer and wishes, that you 
may at last receive a thousand-fold for all the kindness that 
you have shown to your fellow-men. You and I are near 
our final account. May I not hope that this will also be 
entering on our final reward ? I do hope this ; I must hope 
it. "What else is there in life that can make us patiently and 
submissively and calmly endure its ills ? God Almighty 
bless and sustain and guide and comfort you until death ; 
and then may you pass through the dark valley without a 
fear, cheerfully looking to what lies beyond it ! 

" I am, my dear sir, with sincere gratitude, your friend 
' and obedient servant, 

" Moses Stuakt." 

To President Hopkins he writes, Jan. 3 : — 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. gOW 

" Your letters always bring light to our path, and joy to 
our hearts, in one way or another. The two last seemed 
to come at the very time to do both, in a way to impress our 
senses and feelings, as the clear heavens, and brilliant sky, 
and exhilarating atmosphere of this charming cold day do 
mine, in contrast with a beautiful bouquet of flowers on my 
table as a love-token from some of my young sleigh-riding 
friends, and which makes me feel a boy with these boys, and 
an old man with such wise ones as you. 

" In the scenes of the past year, much that will mark its 
character stands out in bold relief; and, if we of this coun- 
try are true to our principles, the great brotherhood of man 
will be elevated; for there have been overturns and over- 
turns which will act until He whose right it is shall reign. 
If we live up to our political professions, our Protestant 
religion will elevate the millions, who will be brought under 
our levelling process. ' Level up,' but not down, was Judge 
Story's maxim of democratic levelling, as he began his 
political career. In the business of levelling up, the Law- 
rence Academy, I trust, may do something. The late 
notices of it have been somewhat various by the newspaper 
editors to whom the Preceptor sent catalogues. My brother 
William's expenditure for the school, after his legacy of 
twenty thousand dollars is paid, will have been something 
more than thirty-five thousand dollars. My own outlays to 
the present time exceed twenty-five thousand ; and I shall 
continue to supply what is needed while I am able, till 
W.'s legacy comes in use." 



" Feb. 25. — Attended Brattle-street Church this morn- 
ing, and heard a consolatory sermon, and, at the closing 
prayer, the giving of thanks to our Father in heaven, through 
Jesus Christ, who lived to serve us, and died to save us." 
27 



210 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

On the 28th, he writes to his brother Abbott, Avho 
had had tendered to him, by General Taylor, the 
office of Secretary of the Navy : — 

" Dear Brother, — I have heard since noon that you have 
the invitation of General Taylor to take a seat in his cabinet, 
and that you will proceed to "Washington forthwith to answer 
for yourself. I am not less grjitified by the offer than you 
can be ; but I should feel deep anguish, if I thought you 
could be induced to accept it, even for a brief period. Your 
name and fame as a private citizen is a better inheritance for 
your children than any distinction you may attain fi-om offi- 
cial station ; and the influence you can exercise for your 
country and friends, as you are, is higher and better than 
any you can exercise as an oflScial of the government." 

On March 3, he writes to his brother at Washing- 
ton: — 

"I awoke this morning veiyr early, and, after a while, 
fixed my miijd in prayer to God, that your duty may be 
clearly seen, and that you may perform it in the spirit of a 
true disciple." 

And again on March 5, after hearing that his bro- 
ther had declined the proffered seat in the cabinet, he 
writes to him : — 

" The morning papers confirm my convictions of what you 
would do ; and I do most heartily rejoice, and say that I 
'never felt as proud before." 

" March 19. — Is there any thing in Scripture to discour- 
age the belief that the spirits of departed friends are still 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 211 

ministering spirits to such as are left here, and a recognition 
and re-union will follow when we are called off? I believe 
fully in this happy re-union ; and it is, next to the example 
of the Beloved, the most animating feeling that prompts me 
through this wearisome journey." 

" April 11. — A subscription paper, with an introductory 

letter from , was handed me, on which were seven or 

eight names for a hundred dollars each, to aid the family 

of , lately deceased. Not having any acquaintance 

with him or family, I did not subscribe. Applications come 
in from all quarters, for all objects. The reputation of giv- 
ing freely is a very bad reputation, so far as my personal 
comfort is concerned." 



April 21, he writes to a friend : — 

" The matters of deepest interest in my last were , 

the religious movement, 's ill-health, and 's acci- 
dent. All these matters are presenting a sunny show now. 
Our dead Unitarianism of ten or fifteen years ago is stirred 
up, and the deep feelings of sin, and salvation through the 
Beloved, are awakened, where there seemed to be nothing 
but indifference and coldness ; and my hope and belief is 
that great good will follow. In the matter of the enjoyment 
of life, you judge me rightly : few men have so many and 
rich blessings to be thankful for ; and, while I am spared 
with sufficient understanding to comprehend these, I pray 
that I may have the honesty to use them in the way that the 
Master will approve. Of what use will it be to have my 
thoughts directed to the increase of my property, at the cost 
of my hopes of heaven ? There, a Lazarus is better oflf 
than a score of Dives. Pray without ceasing, that I may be 
faithful." 



212 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

" July 18. — Brother A. has received the place of Minis- 
ter to the Court of St. James ; the most flattering testimony 
of his worth and character that is within the gift of the pre- 
sent administration, and the only office that I would not 
advise against his accepting." 

About this time, Mr. Lawrence read a small work, 
entitled, " Life in Earnest," by the Rev. James Hamil- 
ton, D.D., Minister of the Scotch Church, Regent's 
Square, London. The sentiments of this little volume 
were so much akin to his o^vn, and were withal so 
forcibly exemplified, that he commenced a correspond- 
ence with the author, which became a most interesting 
one, and continued until the close of his life. 

"Boston, July 18, 1849. 
"To Key. J. Hamilton, B.D. 

" Sir, — The few lines on the other side of this sheet are 
addressed to me by oxa excellent Governor, whose good 
word may be grateful to you, coming as it does from a Chris- 
tian brother across the Atlantic. If it should ever happen to 
you to visit this country, I need not say how great would be 
my pleasure to see you. I am a minute-man, living by the 
day and by the ounce ; but am compensated for all priva- 
tions, by reading such tracts as ' Life in Earnest,' in such a 
way that few are allowed. I have cleared out the Sunday- 
school depository three times in the last four weeks, and 
have scattered the work broadcast, and intend to continue to 
do so if my health allows. Among those to whom" I have 
given one is my younger brother, who is soon to be with 
' you in England, as Minister to your Court. I recommend 
him to your prayers and your confidence. 

" With great respect for your character, I am yours, 

" A. L." 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 213 

" July 23. — We are to have Father Matthew here to- 
morrow : he is a lion, but I probably shall only see him at a 
distance. The influence he is said to have upon his Irish 
people may result in making many of them industrious citi- 
zens, who would, without him, be criminals, and a pest to 
honest people. The evil of such masses being thi-own upon 
us we must bear, and study how to relieve ourselves in any 
practicable way. I see none but to educate the children, 
and circulate the Bible and good books among them, which 
shall encourage them to do the best they can for themselves. 

" The Christian banner may have many local influences 
and teachings ; but its broad folds, I trust, will cover many 
true followers, however exact its worldly interpreters may be 
of what constitutes a true follower. I saw, in the ' New 
York Observer ' (I think it was), a statement of a district in 
the South-west, where were forty-one Christian denomina- 
tions, and no two of whose ministers could exchange pulpit 
labors. Do not these people need a Christian teacher ? 

"Aug. 3. — Father Matthew is doing a good work here ; 
and the result of his power is in his benevolent and sincere 
expression, arid charming head and face. He has called to 
see me twice, and I intend to call and see him to-morrow. 
His ease and eloquence could not do for him what his hea- 
venly expression does. 



214 



CHAPTER XXVIII. 



CODICIL TO WILL. — ILLNESS. — GEN. WHITING. 
DLVRY. 



In August of this year, Mr. Lawrence reviewed his 
will, and added to it the following codicil : — 

"Through the mercy of God, my life has been pro- 
longed to this time, and my mental and bodily powers con- 
tinued to me to an extent that has enabled me to see to the 
application of those trusts that have been confided to me ; 
and, should my stcwai'dship end now or next year, and the 
' Well done ' of the Master be pronounced upon my labors, 
all things here will seem nothing, and less than notliing, in 
comparison. 

" In short, my life, cheerful and happy as it is made by 
the three blessings conferred upon man after his fall (wife, 
chikhen, and friends), is in the keeping of a merciful Father, 
who, by thus continuing it, allows me a foretaste of that 
futiue home I hope for whenever he calls. 

" In reviewing my will, above written, executed on the 
21st day of February, A.D. 1846, I see nothing to altei-, and 
every thing to confirm. And I do hereby declare it still my 
will, and this codicil is to be taken as a confirmation of it ; 
and I do earnestly hope all in interest will see clcaily the 



DIARY AND CORKESPONDENCE. 215 

meaning of every clause, and carry out my meaning without 
any quibbling, question, or controversy. I have been my 
own executor, for many years, of the surplus property I 
have received, and intend to be while my powers of mind 
will allow it. Many near and dear friends to whom I looked 
for counsel and direction, at the time my will was executed, 
have been taken hence, which makes me more desirous of 
giving a renewed expression at this time." 

In this connection was the following note to his 
sous, found in his pocket-book after his decease : — 

" Dear W. and A. — In my will, I have made no bequests 
as tokens of remembrance, and have endeavored to do for all 
(whom I am interested in out of my own family connections) 
what is needful and proper and best ; yet I wish some expres- 
sion of kindness to M. and F., if in the family when I am 
taken." .... 

Here follow donations to domestics who had been 
for many years in his family. 

About the 20th of September, Mr. Lawrence expe- 
rienced a severe attack of cholera morbus, which was 
then a sort of epidemic in the community. Of this 
attack, he writes to President Hopkins as follows : — 

" I hardly know how to address you, since I find myself 
once more spared to lay open my heart to you ; for I do 
indeed feel all the force of the words. "What shall I render 
unto God for all his unspeakable goodness ? I have been 
upon the brink of Jordan, and, with my outstretched hand, 
seized hold of our merciful Father's hand, that was held out 
towards me, and was supported by his grasp as plainly as I 



216 DIARY AND CORKESPONDENCE. 

could have been by your own hand. I was waiting, and 
waying to him to conduct me to the other side, and permit 
me to join the company of loved ones passed on ; and felt 
almost sm-e I should never see the sunlight of this world 
again, when, to my amazement, I found my pains subsiding, 
and that I had not finished the work he had assigned. Wlien 
you were here, I gave you some little outline of my plan of 

work for . On the 18th of September, I completed 

that work, and felt stronger on that day than on any day for 
a month. Under the excitement of the scenes and a sudden 
change of weather, I took cold, and had a terrible attack of 
cholera, which, by the immediate administration of remedies, 
was in a degree quieted. Thus my poor old worn-out ma- 
chine was still kept from parting, as the sole of the shoe is 
sometimes kept on by freezing snow and water upon it." 

In the beginning of this volume, mention is made 
of the first clerk whom Mr. Lawrence employed after 
entering business in the year 1807. To that gentle- 
man, now Brigadier-General Whiting, was addressed 
the following letter, which was the recommencement 
of a correspondence which had ceased for many 
years : — 

" Boston, November, 1849. 
" My dear General, — I have been deeply interested in 
overlooking your volume of revolutionary orders of Wash- 
ington, selected from your father's manuscripts, as it brought 
back scenes and memories of forty years and more ago, when 
I used to visit at your house in Lancaster, and to read those 
papers with a relish that might well be coveted by the youth 
of the present day. I thank you for this token of auld lang 
syne, and shall feel the more thankful if you will come and 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 217 

see me. I would certainly go to you, if I had the strength, 
and could do it safely ; but shall never go so far from home, 
being at any moment liable to be called off. My earnest 
desire is to be ' in line,' and to be able to answer promptly, 
' here.' I hope to hear from you and your wife and wee 
things : all have a hold upon me, and you will give them an 
old man's love. I have taken the opportunity to send you 
some little reminiscences of old times. Butler's ' History of 
Groton' (which connects Lancaster in eai'ly days) is a model 
for its exact truthfulness : he was the preceptor of the aca- 
demy until long after you entered the ai'my. Then I have 
sent a catalogue of the school, from its beginning for fifty 
years or more ; ' Historj' of Lowell as it Was, and Lowell as 
it Is,' well written and true ; ' Boston Notions,' put together 
by old Mr. Dearborn, the printer, whom you knew ; and 
some other little matters, which will serve to freshen old 
things, as your ' Revolutionary Orders of Washington ' have 
done with me. I have just looked into my first sales-book, 
and there see the entries made by you more than forty years 
ago. Ever since, you have been going up, from the Cornet 
of Dragoons to the present station. 

" Farewell. Your old friend, A. L. 

" Gen. Henhy Whitino, Fort Hamilton, N.Y." 

To Robert Bakxwell Ruett, Esq., of South Carolina. 

" Boston, Dec. 12, 1849. 
"My dear Sir, — Your letter of Nov. 30 reached me in 
due course, and gave me unfeigned pleasure in seeing my 
hopes confirmed, that the practical common sense of South 
Carolina was returning, and that the use of their head and 
hands was getting to be felt among the citizens, as necessary 
to their salvation as common brethren in the great family of 
States. Without the use of those trusts placed in their 
hands by our common Father, the State will not be worth 



218 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

the parchment on which to draw the deeds fifty years hence ; 
and I most earnestly pray God to guide, guard, and save the 
State from their childishness in their fears that our northern 
agitators can harm them. I spent the winter of 1819 in 
Washington, and heard the whole of the debate upon admit- 
ting Alabama and ^lissouri into the Union. Alabama was 
admitted, Missouri rejected ; and I made up my mind then 
that I would never interfere until requested by my brethren 
of the Slaveholding States, which resolution I have carried 
out from that day to this ; and I still hold to it. But I 
would not have admitted Alabama then or Missouri on the 
terms they were admitted. We of the North have windy, 
frothy politicians, who hope to make capital out of their 
ultraism ; but, in the aggregate, they soon find their level. 
Now, of the point to which I desire to come, I do earnestly 
desire your State to carry out your prophecy, that, in ten 
years, you will spin all your own crop of cotton ; for we of 
Massachusetts will gladly surrender to you the manufactui-e 
of coarse fabrics, and turn our industry to making fine arti- 
cles. In short, we could now, if you are ready, give up to 
you the coarse fabrics, and turn one-half of our machinery 
into spinning and weaving cotton hose j, and nothing will help 
us all so much as specific duties. The whole kingdom of 
Saxony is employed at this moment in making cotton hose 
for the United States from yarns purchased in England, and 
made of your cotton. How much better would it be for 
you and for us to save these treble profits and transport, by 
making up the cotton at home ! Think of these matters, 
and look at them without the prejudice that prevails so 
extensively in your State. A few years ago, I asked our 

kinsman. Gen. , of your State, how the forty-bale 

theory was esteemed at that time. His answer was, 'We 
all thought it true when it was started, and it had its effect ; 
but nobody is of that mind now.' Still, I believe, when an 



DIARY AND COKRESPONDENCE. 219 

error gets strong hold of the popular mind, it is much more 
difficult to eradicate it than it is to supply the truth in its 
place. If I know myself, I would not mete to you any 
different measure from what I would ask of you ; and I 
must say to you, that your State and people have placed 
themselves in a false position, which will be as apparent to 
them in a few years as the sun is at noon-day. My own 
family and friends are in usual health ; and no man this side 
heaven enjoys earth better than I do. I do pray you to 
come and see us. I hope to see your son at Cambridge this 
week. Most respectfully yours, 

"A. L." 

"Boston, Deo. 11, 1849. 
" To Gen. Henry Whiting, U. S. A., Fort HamUton, N. Y. 

" My early Friend, — Forty years and more ago, we used 
to talk over together the dismemberment of Poland and the 
scenes that followed, and to pour out together our feelings 
for those martyrs of liberty. At the present moment, my 
feelings are deeply moved by taking by the hand Col. P. 
and Major F., just landed here, and driven from their 
country, martyrs to the same cause. I need only say to 
you, that they are strangers among us, and any attentions 
from you will be grateful to them, and duly felt by your old 
friend, A. L." 

" Dec. 24, 1849. — I have been daily employed, of late, 
in accompanying visitors to our public institutions ; among 
these, Mr. Charles Carroll, of Maryland, to the Mather 
School and the Perkins Asylum for the Blind. The effect 
of kindness upon the character of children is more strikingly 
illustrated in the Mather School than in any other I know 
of Three-fifths of the pupils are children of foreigners, — 
English, Irish, Scotch, German, Swiss, and the like, — mostly 



220 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

very poor. Two-fifths are American ; and these foreign 
children, after a few months, are ambitious to look as well 
and do as well as the best. The little Irish creatures are as 
anxious to have their faces clean, their hair smooth, their 
clothes mended, and to learn to read, write, and explain 
their lessons, as the upper children. These upper childi-en, 
to the number of about one hundred, belong to the Law- 
rence Association." 

" Dec. 25, Chi-istmas afternoon. — The following beautiful 
little note, accompanied by a silver cup, almost unmanned 
me. Forty-three girls signed the note ; two others engaged 
in it are sick ; and one died, and was buried at Mount 
Auburn by her particular request, — making forty-six of 
these children, who, of their own motion, got up this token. 
Their note is dated to-day, and rims thus : — 

" ' Respected Sir, — The misses of the Lawrence Asso- 
ciation, anxious to testify their gratitude for the kind interest 
which you have ever manifested towards them, would most 
respectfully request your acceptance of this small token of 
their gratitude.' (Signed by forty-tkree girls.) 

" 26. — "We had great times with the cliildren last even- 
ing at Sister M.'s. It really seemed to me that the enter- 
tainment gave me as much pleasure as any child among 
them ; beside which, I went to the house of my old friend. 
Dr. Bowditch (where I used to visit twenty-five years ago 
on like occasions), for a few minutes, and there found 
seventeen of his grandchildren enjoying the fruits of the 
Christmas tree in the best manner possible." 



221 



CHAPTEE XXIX. 



DIARY. — REFLECTIONS. — SICKNESS. — LETTER FROM DR. 
SHARP. — CORRESPONDENCE. 



On the first of January, 1850, Mr. Lawrence, as 
usual, reviews, in his property-book, the state of his 
affairs during the preceding year, with an estimate of 
his expenditures. The entry for the present year is 
as follows : — 

"The amount of my expenditures for all objects (taxes 
included) have amounted to about one hundred and twenty 
thousand dollars (besides that expended by my wife as her 
own), which carries the amount to five hundred and twenty- 
four thousand dollars since Jan. 1, 1842, being eight years. 
I consider the money well spent, and pray God constantly 
that I may be watchful in the use of the blessings he bestows, 
so that at last he may admit me among the faithful that sur- 
round his throne." 

The above entry will give some idea of the fidelity 
with which his trusts had been fulfilled, so far as 
regarded his worldly possessions. Each year, as it 
rolled by, as well as each successive attack of illness, 



222 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

seemed only to stimulate him in his efforts to accom- 
plish what he could while the day lasted. No anx- 
ious fears disturbed him as he looked forward to the 
near approach of " that night when no man can 
work." That night to him was but a prelude of rest 
from bodily weakness and suffering, and the forerun- 
ner of a brighter day, of which, even in this world, 
he was sometimes permitted to obtain a glimpse. He 
says : — 

"My own health and strength seem renewed. That 
cholera attack has changed the whole man ; and it is only 
now and then I am brought to a pause that quickens me in 
my work when again started. A week since, I ventured on 
two ounces of solid food for my dinner, differing £i-om what 
I have taken for many years. Nine hours after, in my sleep, 
I fainted, and was brought to life by dear N. standing over 
me, giving ammonia, rubbing, and the Hke. Fasting the 
day following brought me back to the usual vigor and enjoy- 
ments. Do Hot you see in this the sentence, ' Do with thy 
might what thy hand findeth to do,' stereotyped in large let- 
ters before me. This it is that brings me to the work at this 
hour in the morning." 

" INIarch 2-i. — Received a letter from Eev. Mr. Hallock, 
Secretary of the American Tract Society, saying that the 
Society will publish Dr. Hamilton's lecture on the lite- 
rary attractions of the Bible, which I had sent them a few 
, weeks since ; and will supply me with two thousand copies, 
as I requested. 

" Received also, this morning, another tract of Dr. H. 
from sister K., in London, called the ' Happy Home,' which 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 223 

finished that series to the working people. After reading 
this number, I feel a strong desire to see the preceding nine 
numbers. 

To THE Rev. James Hamilton, D.D. 

" Boston, March 24, 1850. 

" Rev. and dear Sir, — I need not repeat to you how 
deeply interesting all your writings which I have seen have 
been to me ; but you may not feel indifferent to the fact, that 
the lecture you delivered four months ago, on the literary 
attractions of the Bible (which I received from my sister, 
Mrs. Abbott Lawrence, a few weeks since), is now in process 
of republication by the American Tract Society, agreeably to 
my request. I hope to assist in scattering it broadcast over 
our broad land j and thus you will be speaking li-om your 
own desk, with the speed of light, to an audience from Pas- 
samaquoddy to Oregon. Will you do me the favor to give 
me a copy of ' Happy Home,' from which I may teach my 
children and grandchildren. 

" Respectfully your friend, and brother in Christ, A. L." 

To a Cohntey Clergyman (Orthodox Congregational). 

" Boston, May 16, 1850. 
" Rev. and dear Sir, — I make no apology in asking your 
acceptance of the above, as I am quite sure it cannot come 
amiss to a poor clergyman, situated as you are. I pray that 
you will feel, in using it, you cheer my labors, and make me 
more happy while I am able to enjoy life, in thus sending 
an occasional remembrancer to one for whom I have always 
felt the highest respect and esteem. 

" Your Friend, A. L." 

The above letter contained a draft for one hundred 
dollars, of which Mr. Lawrence makes the following 
memorandum, dated on the 18th: — 



224 DIARY AND CORRESPONDEXCE. 

" Sir. acknowledges the above letter in very grateful 

terms, being what his pressing wants require." 

In a letter to President Hopkins, dated June 22, 
Mr. Lawrence says : — 

" If I cannot visit you bodily, as I had vainly hoped to 
do, I can convince you that the life and hope of younger 
days are still in me. Your parting word touched me to the 
quick, and I cannot repeat or read it without a sympathetic 
tear filling my own eye. I am not able to stand up ; but 
am cheered by the hope, that, before many weeks, I may 
be able to stand alone. Our good friend. Governor Briggs, 
called to see me this week, and was quite horrified to see 
me trundled about on a hospital chair ; however, after a 
good talk, concluded that what was cut ofi" from the lower 
works was added to the upper, and the account in my favor. 
It has always been so with me ; the dark places have been 
made clear at the right time ; so I am no object of pity." 

The lameness liere mentioned was caused by a 
slight sprain of the ancle, but was followed by great 
prostration of the bodily strength, and a feeble state 
of all the functions, resulting in that vitiated state of 
the blood called by physicians " purpura." Violent 
hemorrhages from the nose succeeded ; and these, 
with the intense heat of the weather, so reduced his 
strength, that the only hope of recovery seemed to be 
in removing him from the city to the bracing aii' of 
the sea-shore. Towards the end of July, he was 
accordingly removed upon a mattress to the house of 
his son, at Nahant ; and, from the moment he came 
within the influence of the fresh sea-breeze, began to 



DIARY AND CORKESPONDENCE. 225 

recover his spirits and his strength. A day or two 
after reaching Nahant, he received from his friend, 
the Eev. Dr. Sharp, the following letter, which is so 
characteristic, and reminds one so forcibly of the calm 
and staid manner of that venerable man, that it is 
given entire : — 

"Boston, July 30, 1S50. 
" My very dear Friend, — It was with deep regret I 
learned, on Friday last, that you were quite unwell, and at 
Nahant. It was in my mind yesterday morning to visit you : 
nothing prevented me but an apprehension that it might be 
deemed inexpedient to admit any one to your sick-room, 
except your own family. But, although I have not seen you 
in person since your last sickness, yet I have been with you 
in spirit. I have felt exceedingly sad at the probability of 
your earthly departure. Seldom as we have seen each other, 
your friendship has been precious to me ; and, to say nothing 
of your dear family, your continuance in life is of great 
importance to that large family of humanity, the poor, who 
have so often participated in your bounty. Indeed, as we 
cannot well spare you, I rather cherish the hope, that, in his 
good providence, God will continue you to us a little longer. 
But, whatever may be the issue of your present illness, I 
trust that you, with all your friends, will be enabled to say, 
* The will of the Lord be done.' If he ' lives the longest 
who answers life's great end,' your Hfe, compared with most, 
has not been short. Not that any of us have done more than 
our duty. Nay, we have all come short, and may say, with 
all modesty and truthfulness, we are unprofitable servants ; 
although, in some respects, and to our fellow-beings, we may 
have been profitable. I trust, my deai' friend, you are look- 
ing for the mercy of God, through our Lord Jesus Christ, 
unto eternal life. Death is not an eternal sleep ; no, it is the 
29 



226 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

gate to life. It opens up a blessed immortality to all who, 
in this world, have feared God and wrought righteousness. 
This world is a probationary state : if we have been faithful, 
in some humble degree, to our convictions of duty ; if we have 
regretted our follies and sins ; if we have sought to do the 
will of our heavenly Father, and sought forgiveness tlu'ough 
the mediation of his Son, — God will receive us to his hea- 
venly glory. I believe, in his own good time, he will receive 
you, my very dear friend ; although my prayer is, with sub- 
mission, that he will restore you to comfortable health, and 
allow you to remain with us a little longer. May God be 
with you, and bless you, in life, in death, and for ever more ! 
With most respectful regard to Mrs. L., and sympathy with 
you in your afflictions, in which my dear wife joins, 

" I am truly yours, Daniel Sharp." 

From Little Nahant, Mr. Lawrence writes to a 
friend, under date of Aug. 16 : — 

'• I have just arisen from bed, and am full of the matter 
to tell you how much good your letter has done. I came 
here as the last remedy for a sinking man ; and, blessed be 
God, it promises me renewed life and enjoyment. What is 
it for, that I am thus saved in life, as by a miracle ? Surely 
it' must be in mercy, to finish out my work begun (in your 
college and other places), yet unfinished. Pray, give us 
what time you can when you visit Andover. If I continue 
to improve as I have done for ten days, I hope to return 
home next week ; but may have some drawback that will 
alter the whole aspect of affairs. This beautiful Little Na- 
hant seems to have been purchased, built up, and provided 
by the good influence of our merciful Father in heaven upon 
the heart of , that he might save me from death, when 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 227 

it was made certain I could not hold out many days longer- 
Surely I am called on* by angel voices to render praise to 
God." 

The five weeks' residence upon the sea-shore were 
greatly enjoyed by Mr. Lawrence. As the weather 
was generally fine, much of his time was passed in 
the open air, in watching the ever-varying sea-views, 
in reading, or in receiving the visits of his friends. 
Near the end of August, his health and strength had 
been so far restored as to warrant his return to the 
city, and, as his memoranda show, to increased efforts 
in the field of charity. 



228 



CHAPTER XXX. 



AMIN BEY. — AMOUNT OF DONATIONS TO WILLIAMS 
COLLEGE. 



In November, Amin Bey, Envoy from the Sultan of 
Turkey to the United States, visited Boston. Among 
other attentions, Mr. Lawrence accompanied him on 
a visit to the Female Orphan Asylum, then con- 
taining about one hundred inmates ; and the pleasant 
intercourse was continued by a visit of the minister 
at Mr. La\Yrence's house. 

The following note accompanied a number of vo- 
lumes relating to Boston and -vicinity : — 

To His Excellency Amin Bet. 

" My Brother, — The manifest pleasure you felt in visit- 
ing our Female Orphan Asylum yesterday has left a sunbeam 
on my path, that will illumine my journey to our Father's 
house. "When we meet there, may the joy of that re-union 
you hope for with the loved ones in your own countiy be 
yours and mine, and all the good of all the world be our 
companions for all time ! With the highest respect, believe 
me your friend, A. L." 



DIARY AND CORKESPONDENCE. 229 

To President Hopkins. 

"Boston, Nov. 11, 1850. 
" My dear Friend, — My brief letter of Introduction by 
my young friend S., and your answer to it, which I mislaid 
or lost soon after it came, has made me feel a wish to write 
every day since the first week after I received yours. S. 
made me out better than I was when he saw me. I could 
walk across the rooms, get down and up stairs without much 
aid, and bear my weight on each foot ; having strength in 
my ankle-bones that enabled me to enter the temple walking, 
not leaping, but praising God. If ever I am able to walk 
so far as around the Common, what gratitude to God should 
I feel to take your arm as my support ! I am frequently 
admonished by faint turns that I am merely a ' minute-man,' 
liable to be called for any moment. Only a few days since, 
I had a charming call from Amin Bey and suite, whom I 
received in my parlors below, where were some friends to 
meet him. All seemed interested, and Amin as much so 
as a Turk ever does. When he left us, I went with him 
to the door, saw him out and in his carriage, turned to open 
the inner entry-door, became faint just as M. was leaving the 
party, and leaned on her to get into the parlor. I was laid 
on the sofa, insensible for a short time, but, by labor, absti- 
nence, and great care, for two or three days, have got upon 
my high horse again, and rode with N. to make calls upon 
the good people of Cambridge. After dinner, when I awoke, 
I tried to go about my work, but was called off again, and, 
from that time to this, have been up a little, and then down 
a little ; thus asking me, with angels' voices. Why are you 
left here ? The answer is plain : You have more work to 
do. Pray, my dear friend, for me to be faithful while my 
powers are left with me. The reports of and from your 
college make me feel, that my labors in helping it to get on 
its legs have been repaid fourfold. I am its debtor, and 



230 DIARY A>"D CORRESPONDENCE. 

■will allow the money out of the next year's Income to be 
used for a telescope, if you deem it best. I have made no 
further inquiry for the one in progress here, but will ask 
"W. to look and see Trhat progress is making. When I leave 
off "writing, I shall ride to the office in Court Square, and 
deposit my Whig vote for Gov. Briggs and the others. We 
are so mixed up here as hardly to know -who are supporters 
of the regular ticket, and who not. This fugitive slave 
business will keep our people excited till the law is blotted 
out. In some of our best circles, the law is pronounced 
unconstitutional ; and my belief is, that Franklin Dexter's 
argument on that point wiU settle the question by starting 
it, our great men to the contrary notwithstanding." 

In the above, Mr. Lawrence speaks of the gratifi- 
cation which he had derived from the results of his 
efforts in behalf of Williams College ; and, as there 
may be no more fitting place to give an account of 
these efforts, the following record is here introduced 
from the pen of President Hopkins. It is found in 
his seimon commemorative of the donor, delivered at 
the request of the students, on Feb. 21, 1853. 

" In October, 1841, the building known as the East 
College was burned. Needy as the institution was before, 
this rendered necessary an application to the Legislature for 
funds, and, when this failed, to the public at large. Owing 
to a panic in the money market, this application was but 
slightly responded to, except in this town. In Boston, 
' the sum raised was less than two thousand dollars ; and the 
largest sum given by any individual was one hundred dol- 
lars. This sum was given by Mr. Lawrence, who was 
applied to by a friend of the college ; and this, it is believed. 



niARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 281 

was the only application ever made to him on our behalf. 
This directed his attention to the wants of the college ; but 
nothing more was heard fi-om him till January, 1844. At 
that time, I was delivering a course of the Lowell Lectures 
in Boston, when his son, Mr. Amos A. Lawrence, called and 
informed me that his ftither had five thousand dollars which 
he wished to place at the disposal of the college. As I was 
previously but slightly acquainted with Mr. Lawrence, and 
had had no conversation with him on the subject, this was to 
me an entire surprise ; and, embaiTassed as the institution 
then was by its debt for the new buildings, the relief and 
encouragement which it brought to my own mind, and to 
the minds of others, friends of the college, can h;u-dly be 
expressed. Still, this did not wholly remove the debt. On 
hearing this casually mentioned, he said, if he had known 
how we were situated, he thought he should have given us 
more ; and the following July, without another word on the 
subject, he sent me a check for five thousand dollar-s. This 
put the college out of debt, and added two or three thousand 
doUai-s to its available funds. In January, 1846, he wrote, 
saying he wished to see me ; and, on meeting him, he said 
his object was to consult me about the disposition of ten 
thousand dollars, which he proposed to give the college. 
He wished to know how I thought it would do the most 
good. I replied at once, By being placed at the disposal of 
the trustees, to be used at their discretion. He said, ' Very 
well ; ' and that was all that passed on that point. So I 
thought ; and, knowing his simplicity of chai'acter, and 
singleness of purpose, I felt no embarrassment in making 
that reply. Here was a beautiful exemplification of the 
precept of the apostle, ' He that giveth, let him do it with 
simplicity.' Such a man had a right to have, for one of his 
mottoes, * Deeds, not words.' This was just what was 
needed ; but it gave us some breadth and enlargement, 



232 DIAKY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

and was a beginning in what, it had long been felt, must, 
sooner or later, be undertaken, — the securing of an aTailable 
fund suitable as a basis for such an institution. His next 
large gift was the library. This came from his asking me, 
as I was riding with him the following winter, if we wanted 
any thing. Nothing occurred to me at the time, and I 
repUed in the negative ; but, the next day, I remembered 
that the trustees had voted to build a library, provided the 
treasurer should find it could be done for twenty-five hun- 
dred dollars. This I mentioned to him. He inquired what 
I supposed it would cost. I replied, ' Five thousand dollars.' 
He said at once, ' I will give it.' With his approbation, the 
plan of a building was svibsequently adopted that would cost 
seven thousand dollars ; and he paid that sum. A year or 
two subsequently, he inquired of me the price of tuition 
here, saying he should like to connect Groton Academy 
with "Williams College ; and he paid two thousand dollars 
to establish four scholarships for any one who might come 
from that institution. His next gift was the telescope, 
which cost about fifteen hundred dollars. The history of 
this would involve some details which I have not now time 
to give. In 1851, accompanied by Mrs. Lawrence, he made 
a visit here. This was the fii-st time either of them had 
seen the place. In walking over the grounds, he said they 
had great capabilities, but that we needed more land ; and 
authorized the purchase of an adjoining piece of four acres. 
This purchase was made for one thousand dollars ; and, if 
the college can have the means of laying it out, and adorning 
it suitably, it will, besides furnishing scope for exercise, 
be a fit addition of the charms of culture to great beauty 
of natural scenery. In addition to these gifts, he has, at 
different times, enriched the Kbrary with costly books, of 
the expense of which I know nothing. Almost every thing 
we have in the form of art was given by him. In December, 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 233 

1845, I received a letter from him, dated the 22d, or ' Fore- 
fathers' Day,' ■svhich enclosed one hundred dollars, to be 
used for the aid of needy students in those emergencies 
which often arise. This was entirely at his own suggestion ; 
and nothing could have been more timely or appropriate in 
an institution like this, where so many young men are 
struggling to make their own way. Since that time, he has 
furnished me with at least one hundred dollars annually for 
that purpose ; and he regarded the expenditure with much 
interest. Thus, in different ways, Mr. Lawrence had given 
to the college between thirty and forty thousand dollars ; 
and he had expressed the purpose, if he should live, of aiding 
it still further. Understanding as he did the position and 
wants of this college, he sympathized fully with the trustees 
in their purpose to raise the sum of fifty thousand dollars, 
and, at the time of his death, was exerting a most warm 
hearted and powerful influence for its accomplishment. In 
reference to this great effort, we feel that a strong helper is 
taken away. The aid which Mr. Lawrence thus gave to the 
college was great and indispensable ; and probably no memo- 
rial of him will be more enduring than what he has done 
here. By this, being dead, he yet speaks, and will continue 
to speak in all coming time. From him will flow down 
enjoyment and instruction to those who shall walk these 
grounds, and look at the heavens through this telescope, and 
read the books gathered in this library, and hear instruction 
from teachers sustained, wholly or in part, by his bounty. 
Probably he could not have spent this money more usefully ; 
and there is reason to believe, that he could have spent it in 
no way to bring to himself more enjoyment. The prosperity 
of the college was a soiirce of great gratification to him ; and 
he said more than once, that he had been many times repaid 
for what he had done here. That he should have thus done 
what he did xmsolicited, and that he — and, I may add, his 

30 



234 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

family — should have continued to find in it so mucli of 
satisfaction, is most grateful to my own feelings, and must 
be so to every friend of the college. In doing it, he seemed 
to place himself in the relation, not so much of a patron 
of the college, as of a sympathizer and helper in a great and 
good work." 



235 



CHAPTER XXXI. 



LETTERS. — DIAKY. 



At the beginning of the year 1851, Mr. Lawrence 
writes to President Hopkins : — 

" The closing of the old year was like our western horizon 
after sunset, bright and beautiful ; the opening of the new 
radiant with life, light, and hope, and crowned with such a 
costume of love as few old fathers, grandfathers, and uncles 
can muster ; in short, my old sleigh is the pet of the season, 
and rarely appears without being well filled, outside and 
inside. It is a teacher to the school-children, no less than to 
my grandchildren ; for they all understand, that, if they are 
well-behaved, they can ride with me when I make the sig- 
nal ; and I have a strong persuasion, that this attention to 
them, with a present of a book and a kind word now and 
then, makes the little fellows think more of theh- conduct 
and behavior. At any rate, it does me good to hear them 
call out, ' How do you do, Mr. Lawrence ? ' as I am driving 
along the streets and by-ways of the city 

" My manner of life you have known ; and our intercourse 
has been of such a character as to allow you to be my father 
confessor : so here I begin. Many years ago, I remember 
telling you what I had said to my sons respecting my pro- 
perty ; that, if I died then, I should leave them as much as 
was good for them, if they made good use of it, and more 



236 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

than was good for them if they made bad use, and that I 
would be my own executor of my future profits. Acting on 
this platform, I have expended, in the last nine years (end- 
ing with the year 1850), for necessaries and luxuries, five 
hundred and seventy-nine thousand dollars ; or sixty-four 
thousand three hundred and thirty-three dollars per year, on 
an average, or somewhat more than twelve hundred dollars a 
week. More than five-sixths has been on the luxuries of 
this world, of which you have been a ministering angel for 
some small part, and for which I thank God and bless you. 
As the steward and trustee of his blessings, pray for me to 
be faithful ; and I have full liutli that your prayers will be of 
use." 

To an aged clergyman in the country, who was 
blind and in indigent circumstances, he writes : — 

"Jan. 14. 

" Your letter of last week reached me on Saturday, and 
was indeed a sunbeam, which quickened me to do what I 
had intended for a * happy new-year,' before receiving yours. 
I trust you will have received a parcel sent by railroad, on 
Monday, directed to you, and containing such things as I 
deemed to be useful in your family ; and I shall be more 
than paid, if they add one tint to the ' purple light ' you 
speak of, that opens upon your further hopes of visiting 
us the coming season. For many months, I was unable to 
walk ; but my feet and ankle-bones have now received 
strength. I feel that the prayers of friends have been 
answered by my renewed power to do more work. How, 
then, can I enjoy life better than by distributing the good 
things entrusted to me among those who are comforted by 
receiving them ? So you need not feel, my Iriend, that you 
are any more obliged than I am. The enclosed bank-bills 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 237 

may serve to fit up the materials for use ; at any rate, will 
not be out of place in your pocket. I trust to see you again 
in this world, which has to me so many interesting connect- 
ing links between the first and only time I have ever seen 
you (thirty-five or more years ago, in Dr. Huntington's pul- 
pit. Old South Church) and the present." 

Faoji Rev. James Hamiltox, D.D. 

"42, GowER Stkeet, London, Feb. 15, 1851. 
" My dear Sir, — No letter which authorship has brought 
to me ever gave me such pleasure as I received from yours 
of July, 1849, enclosing one which Governor Briggs had 
written to you. That strangers so distinguished should take 
such interest in my writings, and should express yourselves 
so kindly towards myself, overwhelmed me with a pleasing 
surprise, and with thankfulness to God who had given me 
such favor. I confess, too, it helped to make me love more 
the country which has always been to me the dearest next to 
my own. In conjunction with some much-prized friendships 
which I have formed among your ministers, it would almost 
tempt me to cross the Atlantic. But I am so bad a sailor, 
that I fear I must postpone personal intercourse with those 
American friends who do not come to England, until we 
reach the land where there is no more sea. However feebly 
expressed, please accept my heartfelt thanks for all the cost 
and trouble you have incurred in circulating my publications. 
It is pleasant to me to think that your motive in distributing 
them, in the first instance, could not be friendship for the 
author ; and, to both of us, it will be the most welcome 
result, if they promote the cause of practical Christianity. 
Owing to weakness in the throat and chest, I cannot preach 
so much as many of my neighbors, and therefore I feel the 
more anxious that my tracts should do something for the 
honor of the Saviour and the welfare of mankind. You 



238 DIARY AND CORRESPOXDEXCE. 

were kind enough to reprint my last lectm-e to young men. 
I could scarcely wish the same distinction bestowed on its 
successor, because it is a fragment. I have some thoughts 
of extending it into a short exposition of Ecclesiastes, which 
is a book well suited to the times, and but little under- 
stood Yours most truly, James Hamilton." 

In reply to the above letter, Mr. Lawrence writes, 
AprU 8 : — 

" I will not attempt to express to you in words my plea- 
sure in recei^-ing your letter of Feb. 15, with its accompani- 
ments. The lecture delivered to the young men on the 4th 
of February, although designated by you as a fragment, I 
sent to my friend, with a copy of your letter, asking him 
whether he would advise its publication, and whether he 
would scatter it with its predecessor ; and, if so, I would 
pay the expense. His answer you have here, and I have the 
pleasure of saying, that the ' Fragment ' will be ready to cir- 
culate by thousands the present week ; and, when you shall 
have added your further comments upon Solomon and his 
works, our American Tract Society will be ready to publish 
the whole by hundieds of thousands I trust, thus enabling 
you to preach through our whole country. The memoir of 
Lady Colquhon is a precious jewel, which I shall keep 
among my treasures to leave my descendants. I had pre- 
viously purchased a number of copies of the American edi- 
tion, and scattered them among my friends, so that there is 
great interest to see your copy sent me. The part of your 
letter which touched my heait most was that in which you 
speak of my brother Abbott, and say of him, that * no foreign 
minister is such a favorite with the British public' It 
brought him before me like a daguerreotype likeness, 
through every period of his life for fifty years. First, as the 




<c 



I \A-I ! 


/ 1" 


■ 1 \ ■.. \ . ; 1 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 239 

guiding spirit of the boys of our neighborhood, in breaking 
thi'ough the deep snow-drifts which often blocked up the 
roads in winter ; then as my apprentice in the city ; and, in 
a few years, as the young military champion, to watcn night 
and day, under arms, on the point of Bunker Hill nearest 
the ocean, the movements of a British fleet lying within four 
or five miles of him, and threatening the storming of Boston ; 
then, soon after, as embarking in the very first ship for Eng- 
land, after the close of the war, to purchase goods, which 
were received here in eighty-three days after he sailed. 
Since that time, our firm has never been changed, except by 
adding ' & Co.' when other partners were admitted. He has 
been making his way to the people's respect and affection 
from that time to this, and now fills the only public station 
I would not have protested against his accepting, feeling that 
place cannot impart grace. My prayers ascend continually 
for him, that he may do his work, under the full impression 
that he must give an account to Him whose eye is constantly 
upon him, and whose ' Well done ' will be infinitely better 
than all things else. I believe he is awakening an interest 
to learn more about this country ; and the people will be 
amazed to see what opportunities are here enjoyed for happi- 
ness for the great mass. "What we most fear is that igno- 
rance which will bring every thing down to its own level, 
instead of that true knowledge, which shall level up the 
lowest places, now inundated with foreign emigrants. Our 
duty is plain ; and, if we do not educate and elevate this class 
of our people, they will change our system of government 
within fifty years. Vii'tue and intelligence ajre the basis of 
this. government ; and the duty of all good men is to keep it 

pure 

" And now, my friend, what can I say that will influence 
you to come here, and enjoy with me the beautiful scenes 
upon and around our Mount Zion ? 



240 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

"With the highest respect and aifection, I am most 
truly yours, A. L." 

" P. S. — Mrs. L. desires me to present to you and your 
lady her most respectful regard, with the assurance that your 
writings are very precious to her. She is a granddaughter 
of a clergyman of your ' Kirk,' and enjoys much its best 
writings." 

To the same gentleman, he writes soon after : — 

"And now let me speak about the ' Royal Preacher.'* I 
expected much, but not so much as I found in it. We, on 
this side the Atlantic, thank you ; and the pictures of some 
of our own great men are drawn^to the life, although their 
history and character could not have been in your eye. Truth 
is the same now as in Solomon's time ; and it is surprising 
that the mass of men do not see and acknowledge that ' the 
saint is greater than the sage, and discipleship to Jesus the 
pinnacle of human dignity.' I have had, this morning, two 
calls, from (JifFerent sections of our Union, for your ' Life in 
Earnest,' ' Literary Attractions of the Bible,' ' Solomon,' 
' Redeemed in Glory,' &c., which I responded to with hearty 
good-will. Some of the books will go out of the countiy 
many thousand miles, and will do good. I must shake 
hands with you across the Atlantic, if you can't ' screw up ' 
your courage to come here, and bid you God speed in all 
your broad plans for the good of your fellow-men. 

" I have a great respect for deep religious feelings, even 
when I cannot see as my friends do ; and therefore pray God 
to clear away, in his own good time, all that is now dark and 
veiled. 

" It is time for me to say farewell." 

* A tract by Dr. Hamilton. 



241 



CHAPTEE XXXII. 



Sm T. F. BXJXTON. — LETTER FROM LADY BUXTON. — ■ 
ELLIOTT CRESSON. — LETTERS. 



After the death of Sir Thomas Fowell Buxton, Mr. 
Lawrence had read what had been published respect- 
ing his life and character, and had formed an exalted 
opinion of his labors in behalf of the African race. 
A small volume had been issued, entitled " A Study 
for Young Men, or a Sketch of Sir T. F. Buxton," by 
Rev. T. Binney, of London. Mr. Lawrence had pur- 
chased and circulated large numbers of this work, 
which recorded the deeds of one upon whom he con- 
sidered the mantle of Wilberforce to have fallen ; and, 
through a mutual friend, he had been made known to 
Lady Buxton, who writes to him as follows : — 

" Very, very grateful am I for your love for him, and, 
through him, to me and my children. I desire that you 
may be enriched by all spiritual blessings ; and that, through 
languor and illness and infirmity, the Lord may bless and 
prosper you and the work of your hands. I beg your accept- 
ance of the third edition, in the large octavo, of the memoir 
of Sir Fowell." 

31 



242 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

Those who have read the memoir referred to will 
remember the writer, before her marriage, as Miss 
Hannah Gumey, a member of that distinguished 
family of Friends, of which Mrs. Fry was the elder 
sister. During the remaining short period of Mr. 
Lawrence's life, a pleasant correspondence was kept 
up, from which a few extracts will hereafter be 
given. 

To Elliott Cresson, of Philadelphia, the enthusiastic 
and veteran champion of the colonization cause, Mr. 
Lawrence writes, June 12, 1851 : — 

" My dear old Friend Cresson, — I have just re-read 
your kind letter of June 2, and have been feasting upon the 
treasure you sent me in the interesting volume entitled 
' Africa Redeemed.' I will set your heart at rest at once by 
assuring you that I feel just as you do towards that land. 
Do you remember visiting me, a dozen or more years ago, 
to get me to lead off vrith a thousand-dollar subscription for 
colonization, and my refusing by assuring you that I would 
not interfere with the burden of slavery, then pressing on 
our own Slave States, until requested by them ? . . . . 
Jiiberla, in the mean time, has gone on, and now promises to 
be to the black man what New England has been to the 
Pilgrims, and Pennsylvania to the Friends. I say, with all 
my heart, to Gov. Roberts and his associates, God speed 
you, and carry onward and upward the glorious work of 
redeeming Africa ! I had a charming message from a young 
missionary in Africa a few days since, — the Rev. Mr. Hoff- 
man, of the Episcopal Mission ; and you will be glad to 
hear that the good work of education for Liberia progresses 
surely and steadily here. My son A. is one of the trustees 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 243 

and directors (Prof. Greenleaf is president), and has given 
a thousand dollars from ' a young merchant ; ' and I bid him 
give another thousand from 'an old merchant,' which he 
will do as soon as he returns from our old home with his 
family. Now I say to you, my friend, I can sympathize and 
work with you while I am spared. God be praised ! we are 
greatly favored in many things. No period of my life has 
been more joyous. 

" With constant affection, 1 am yours, A. L." 

Among other memoranda of the present month is 
found a cancelled note of five hundred dollars, which 
had been given by a clergyman in another state to a 
corporation, which, by reason of various misfortunes, 
he had not been able to pay. Mr. Lawrence had 
heard of the circumstance, and, without the know- 
ledge of the clergyman, had sent the required sum 
to the treasurer of the corporation, with directions to 
cancel the obligation. 

To Ladt Buxtok. 

" Boston, July 8, 1851. 
" Dear Lady Buxton, — Your letter, and the beautiful 
copy of the memoir of your revered and world-wide honored 
husband, reached me on the 26th of June. I have read and 
re-read your heart-touching note with an interest you can 
understand better than I can describe. I can say that I 
thank you, and leave you to imagine the rest. Sir Fowell 
was born the same year, and in the same month, that I was ; 
and his character and his labors I have been well acquainted 
with since he came into public life ; and no man of his time 
stood higher in my confidence and respect. Although I 
have never been in public life, I have been much interested 



244 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

in public men, and have sometimes had my confidence 
abused, but have generally given it to men who said what 
they meant, and did what they said. I feel no respect for 
the demagogue, however successful he may be ; but am able 
to say, with the dear and honored friend whose mantle fell 
upon Sir Fowell, ' What shadows we are, and what shadows 
we pursue ! ' I feel pity for the man who sacrifices his 
hopes of heaven for such vara objects as end in the mere 
gaze of this world. The ' Study for Young Men,' repub- 
lished here a short time since, is doing such work among us 
as must cheer the spirit of your husband in his heavenly 
home. 

" I enclose you a note from Laura Bridgman, a deaf, 
dumb, and blind gii-1, who has been educated at our asylum 
for the last twelve years or more (now about twenty-two 
years old), which may interest you from the fact of her 
extraordinary situation. 

" With great respect, I remaia most truly yours, 

"A. L." 

To A Lady in Philadelphia. 

" Dear L., — Your call on me to ' pay up ' makes me feel 
that I had forgotten, and therefore neglected, my promise. I 
begin without preface. When a child, and all the way up 
to fifty years of age, the incidents of revolutionary history 
were so often talked over by the old soldiers who made our 
house their rendezvous whenever they came near it, that I 
feel as if I had been an actor in the scenes described. 
Among these, the Battle of Bunker Hill was more strongly 
impressed upon my mind than any other event. My father, 
' then twenty-one years old, was in Captain Farwell's company, 
a subaltern, full of the right spirit, as you may know, having 
some sparks left when you used to ride on his sled and in 
his wagon, and eat his ' rattle apples,' which were coveted 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 245 

by all the children. He was in the breastwork ; and his 
captain was shot through the body just before or just after 
Pitcairn was shot. My father did not know Major Pitcairn 
personally, but understood it was he who mounted the 
breastwork, calling to his soldiers to follow, when he pitched 
into the slight trench outside, riddled and dead, as my father 
always thought as long as he lived. But it turned out other- 
wise. He was brought from the field, and lodged in a house 
in Prince Street, now standing (the third from Charlestown 
Bridge) ; and the intelligence was immediately communi- 
cated to the Governor, then in the Royal House, now called 
the Province House. He sent Dr. Kast and an officer, 
accompanied by young Bowdoin as an amateur, to see to the 
major, and report. On entering the chamber, the doctor 
wished to examine the wound ; but Pitcairn declined allow- 
ing him, saying it was of no use, as he should soon die. 
When pressed by the argument that his excellency desired 
it, he allowed Dr. Kast to open his vest ; and the blood, 
which had been stanched, spirted out upon the floor ; so that 
the room carried the mark, and was called ' Pitcairn's 
Chamber ' until long after the peace. The doctor returned 
immediately to the Governor to report ; and, before he could 
get back, life had fled. He was laid out in his regimentals, 
and was deposited in the vault of St. George's Church, now 
the Stone Chapel, and there remained until 1788, when Dr. 
Winship, of Roxbury, then on a visit to London, had occasion 
to call on Dr. C. Letsom, and informed him that he had in 
his possession the key of the vault ; that he had examined 
the body, which was in so good a state of preservation, that 
he recognized the features ; and that he had counted at least 
thirty marks of musket-balls in various parts of the body. 
An arrangement was made, through Dr. Winship, for the 
removal of the body to England. Dr. William Pitcairn 
built a vault in the Burying-Ground of St. Bartholomew, 



^46 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

near the hospital, for its reception. Capt. James Scott, the 
commander of a trading vessel between Boston and London 
at that period, undertook the service of removal, although 
he foresaw difficulty in undertaking the business, on account 
of the strong prejudice of sailors to having a corpse on board. 
With a view to concealment, the coffin was enclosed in a 
square deal-case, containing the church-organ, which was to 
be sent to England for repaii-s. This case, with ' Organ ' 
inscribed upon it, was placed, as it was said, for better 
security, in a part of the ship near the sailors' berths, and, 
in that situation, was used occasionally during the passage 
for their seat or table. On arrival of the ship in the river, 
an order was obtained for the landing of the case ; and, as it 
was necessary to describe its contents, the order expressed 
permission to land a corpse. This revealed the stratagem of 
Capt. Scott, and raised such a feeling among the sailors as to 
show that they would not have been quiet had they known 
the truth respecting their fellow-lodger. Major Pitcairn 
was the only British officer particularly regarded by our 
citizens, as ready to listen to their complaints, and, as far as 
in his power, to relieve them, when not impeded by his 
military duties. Our excellent old friend B. will be inter- 
ested in the ' Stone Chapel ' part of this story, and probably 
can add particulars that I may have omitted. 

" Your affectionate A. L." 



247 



CHAPTEE XXXIII. 



LETTERS. — REV. DR. SCORESBY. — WABASH COLLEGE. 



In answer to a note from a relative of Lady Cole- 
brooke, announcing her death, at Dunscombe, in the 
island of Barbadoes, Mr. Lawrence wrote the follow- 
ing note of sympathy to her husband, Sir William 
Colebrooke, then Governor of that island. She "will 
be remembered as the lady who had formerly visited 
Boston, and was alluded to by Mr. Lawrence in his 
diary, as a niece of Major Andre : — 

" Dear Sir William, — I lose no time in expressing to 
you the feelings of my heart, on reading the brief notice of 
the last hours of dear Lady Colebrooke. All my recollec- 
tions and associations of her are of the most interesting cha- 
racter ; and, for yourself, I feel more than a common regard. 
We may never meet again in this world ; but it matters little, 
if, when we are called off, we are found * in line,' and ready 
to receive the cheering ' Well done ' when we reach that 
better world we hope for. I trust that you, and all your 
dear ones, have been in the hollow of our Father's hand, 
through the shadings of his face from you ; and that, in his 
own good time, all will be cleared away. 

" Faithfully and respectfully yours, Amos Laweence. 
"Boston, Aug. 8, 1851." 



248 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

To Hon. Charles B. Haddock, Minister op United States to 
Portugal. 

"Boston, Aug. 19, 1861. 

" Dear and kind-heaited Friend, — Your letters to me 
before leaving the country, and after reaching England, 
awakened many tender remembrances of times past, and 
agreeable hopes of times to come. In that, I felt as though 
I had you by the hand, with that encouraging ' Go forward ' 
in the fear of God, and confidence in his fatherly care and 
guidance. I know your views have always put this trust at 
the head of practical duties, and that you will go forward in 
your present duties, and do better service to the country than 
any man who could be sent. Portugal is a sealed book, in a 
great degree, to us. Who so able to unlock and lay open 
its history as yourself? Now, then, what leisure you have 
may be most profitably applied to the spreading out the 
treasures before us ; and, my word for it, your reputation as 
a writer and a thinker will make whatever you may publish 
of this sort desirable to read by the great mass of our reading 
population 

" I hold Jthut God has given us our highest enjoyments, 
in every period, from childhood to old age, in the exer- 
cise of our talents and our feelings with reference to his 
presence and oversight ; and that, at any moment, he 
inay call us off, and that we may thus be left to be among 
the children of light or of darkness, according to his word 
and our preparation. These enjoyments of childhood, of 
middle age, of mature life, and of old age, are all greatly 
increased by a constant reference to the source from whence 
they come ; and the danger of great success in life is more 
to be feared, in our closing account, than any thing else. A 
brief space will find us in the earth, and of no further conse- 
quence than as we shall have marked for good the generation 
of men growing up to take our places. The title of an 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 249 

honest man, •who feared God, is worth more than all the 
honors and distinction of the world. Pray, let me hear from 
you, and the dear lady, whom I hope to escort once more 
over the sides of our Mount Zion, and introduce to some of 
my children and grandchildren settled upon the borders ; 
and, if any stranger coming this way from you will accept 
such facilities as I can give to our institutions, I shall gladly 
render them. It is now many years since I have sat at table 
with my family, and I am now better than I have been at 
any time during that period ; in short, I am light-hearted as 
a child, and enjoy the children's society with all the zest of 
early days. I must say, ' God speed you, my friend,' and 
have you constantly in the hollow of his hand. In all kind 
remembrances, Mrs. L. joins me, to your lady and yourself. 
" Faithfully and respectfully your Friend, 

" Amos Lawrence." 

On the same day that the preceding letter was 
penned, Mr. Lawrence, in acknowledgment of some 
work sent to him hy the Rev. Dr. Scoresby, of Brad- 
ford, England, wrote the following letter. That gen- 
tleman had visited this country twice, and had made 
many friends in Boston. Once an Arctic traveller, 
and a man of great scientific acquirement, he has now 
become an active and hard-working curate in the 
Church of England, and has devoted all his energies 
to the task of elevating the lower orders of the popu- 
lation where his field of labor has been cast : — 

"Boston, Aug. 19, 1851. 
" My dear Friend, — Your letter from Torquay, of 9th 
July, reached me on the 6th of this month. It brought 
to memory our agreeable intercourse of former years, and 
32 



250 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

cheered me with the hope that I might again see you in this 
world, and again shake your hand in that cordial, social way 
that goes direct to the heart. I had been much interested 

in the account brought by , and in your kind messages 

by him. Your memorials of your father interest me exceed- 
ingly, and I thank you most sincerely for the volume and 
the sermon you sent. This sermon I sent to a friend of 
mine, and also a friend of yours, who became such after hear- 
ing you preach in Liverpool. Professor , of Col- 
lege, is a most talented, efficient, and popular teacher ; and his 
present position he has attained by his industry and his merit. 
He was a poor youth, in Liverpool, who followed you in 
your preaching ; came here, and went as an apprentice to a 
mechanical business ; was noticed as a bright fellow ; was 

educated by persons assisting him, and graduated at 

College. He became a tutor, and is now a professor, and is 
an honor to the college and his nation. We are all at work 
in New England, and now feel a twinge from too fast driving 
in some branches of business ; but, in the aggregate, our 
country is rapidly advancing in wealth, power, and strength, 
notwithstauding the discontent of our Southern brethren. 
We have allowed the ' black spot ' to be too far spread over 
our land ; it should have been restrained more than thirty 
years ago, and then our old Slave States would have had no 
just cause of complaint. I am called oflF, and must bid you 
farewell, with kind regards of Mrs. L., and my own most 
faithful and affectionate remembrance. Amos Lawrence. 
" Ret. William Scoresby, D.D., Torquay, Devonshire, Eng." 

To President Hopkins. 

"Boston, Nov. 16, 1861. 
" My dear Friend, — This is a rainy day, which keeps me 
housed; and, to improve it in 'pursuit,' I have a bundle 
made up, of the size of a small ' haycock,' and directed to 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 251 

you by railroad, with a few lines enclosed for the amusement 
of the children. I have told A. and L. that they couldn't 
jump over it ; but H. could, by having a clear course of two 
rods. Louis Dwight has spent a half-hour with me this 
morning, exhibiting and explaining his plan for the new 
Lunatic Asylum of the State, which I think is the best 
model I have ever seen, and is a decided improvement on all 
our old ones. The Committee, of which Governor Briggs is 
Chairman, will give it a careful consideration and compari- 
son with Dr. Bell's, and perhaps Dr. Butler's and others ; 
and, with such an amount of talent and experience, the new 
asylum will be the best, I trust, that there is on this side of 
the Atlantic. Louis Dwight is in fine spirits, and in full 
employ in his peculiar line. The new institution in New 
York for vagrant children will very likely be built on his 
plan. He is really doing his work most successfully, in 
classing and separating these young sinners, so that they may 
be reclaimed, and trained to become useful citizens ; in that 

light, he is a public benefactor 

" Faithfully and affectionately yours, 

"Amos Lawrence." 

In a letter to the same gentleman, written on Sun- 
day, and within a few days of the preceding, Mr. 
Lawrence says, after describing one of his severe 
attacks : — 

" I am not doing wrong, I think, in consecrating a part of 
the day to you, being kept within doors by one of those 
kindly admonitions which speaks through the body, and tells 
me that my home here is no shelter fi-om the storm. I have 
been unusually well for some weeks past, and it seemed to 
me that my days passed with a rapidity and joyousness that 



252 DIAKY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

nothing short of the intercourse with the loved ones around 
me could have caused. What can be more emphatic, until 
my final summons ? If my work is done, and well done, I 
should not dread the summons ; pray that it may be, and 
that we may meet again after a brief separation." 

Mr. Lawrence had, for a considerable time, been 
interested in the Wabash College, at Crawfordsville, 
Indiana ; and, on the 24th of November, announced 
to the Trustees a donation from Mrs. L. of twelve 
hundi'ed dollars, to found four free scholarships for 
the use of the academy at Groton. He adds : — 

" I would recommend that candidates for the scholarships 
who abstain from the use of intoxicating drinks and tobacco 
always have a preference. This is not to be taken as a pro- 
hibition, but only as a condition to give a preference." 

Mr. Lawrence speaks of his interest in Wabash 
College, growing out of his affection and respect for 
its President, the Rev. Charles Wliite, D.D., who went 
from New England, and with whom he had become 
acquainted during a visit which that gentleman 
had made to his native State. Eight days after this 
donation to Wabash College, Mr. Lawrence enclosed 
to Eev. Dr. Pond, of the Theological School at 
Bangor, Maine, the sum of five hundred dollars ; 
which he says, with other sums already subscribed by 
others for new professorships, would " prove a great 
blessing to all who resort to the institution through 
all time." 



253 



CHAPTEE XXXIY. 



DIARY. — LETTERS. — THOMAS TARBELL. — UNCLE TOBY. 
REV. DR. LOWELL. 



" Jan. 1, 1852. — The value of my property is somewhat 
more than it was a year ago, and I pray God that I may be 
faithful in its use. My life seems now more likely to be 
spared for a longer season than for many years past ; and I 
never enjoyed myself more highly. Praise the Lord, my 
soul! 

" P. S. — The outgoes for all objects since Jan. 1, 1842 
(ten years), have been six hundred and four thousand dollars, 
more than five-sixths of which have been applied in making 
other people happy ; and it is no trouble to find objects for 
all I have to spare." 

This sum, in addition to the subscriptions and 
donations for the year 1852, make the amount of his 
expenditures for charitable purposes, during the last 
eleven years of his life, to be about five hundred and 
twenty-five thousand dollars. From 1829 to 1842, 
the sum expended for like appropriations was, accord- 



254 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

ing to his memoranda, one hundred and fourteen 
thousand dollars ; making, for the last twenty-three 
years of his life, the sum of six hundi-ed and thirty- 
nine thousand dollars expended in charity. Taking 
the amount of his property at various times, as noted 
by himself, from the year 1807 to 1829, a period of 
twenty-two years, with his known liberality and 
habits of systematic charity, it would be safe to assert, 
that, during his life, he expended seven hundred thou- 
sand dollars for the benefit of his fellow-men. Many 
persons have done more ; but few perhaps have done 
as much in proportion to the means which they had 
to bestow. 

In a letter to President Hopkins, dated March 31, 
Mr. Lawrence writes : — 

" I am interested in every thing you write about in your 
last letter ; but among the items of deepest interest is the 
fact of the deep religious feeling manifested by the young 
men ; and I pray God it may take deep root, and grow, 
and become the controlling power in forming their character 
for immortality. I trust they will count the cost, and act 
cocnsistently. May God speed them in this holy work ! " 

A few days later, he writes on the same sub- 
ject : — 

, " And now let us turn to matters of more importance ; 
the awakening of the young men of your college to their 
highest interest, — the salvation of their souls. I have been 
moved to tears in reading the simple statement of the case. 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 255 

and I pray God to perfect the good work thus begun. I 
have much to think of to-day, this being my sixty-sixth 
birthday. The question comes home to me, "What I am 
rendering to the Lord for all his benefits ; and the answer 
of conscience is, Imperfect service. If accepted, it will be 
through mercy ; and, with this feeling of hope, I keep about, 
endeavoring to scatter good seed as I go forth in my daily 
ministrations." 



The following correspondence was not received in 
time to be placed in the order of its date, but is now 
given as an illustration of Mr. Lawrence's views on 
some important points, and also as an instance of his 
self-control. In the autumn of 1847, he became 
acquainted with the Kev. Dr. , a Scotch Presby- 
terian clergyman, then on a visit to some friends in 
Boston. During a drive in the environs, with this 
gentleman and the Rev. Dr. Blagden, Mr. Lawrence 
made a remark of a practical nature upon some reli- 
gious topic, which did not coincide with the views of 
his Scotch friend ; and a debate ensued, which was 
characterized by somewhat more of warmth than 
was warranted by the nature of the subject. Mutual 
explanations and apologies followed, and the corres- 
pondence which was continued after the return of Dr. 

to Scotland shows that the discussion on the 

occasion referred to had caused no diminution of their 
mutual regard or good-will. 

The Rev. Dr. Blagden, in a note to the editor, dated 
Boston, April 18, 1855, writes as follows: — 



256 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

" As the result of our incidental conversation on Monday 
last, let me say, that the facts of which we spoke occurred 

during a drive which the Rev. Dr. , of Scotland, and I 

were enjoying with your father, in his carriage, at his kind 
invitation, in October, 1847. 

" Without being able to recall the precise connection in 
which the remarks were made, I only now remember that 
Mr. Lawrence was led to speak with some degree of warmth, 
but with entire kindness, on the great error of relying on any 
idea of justification before God by faith, without correspond- 
ing works ; so that, to one not familiar with the religious 
events in the history of this community, which, by operating 
on Mr. Lawrence's habits of thought, might well lead him 
to be jealous of any view of faith which did not directly 
express the necessity of good works, his remai-ks might very 
readily have seemed like a direct attack on that great truth 
of justification by faith, which Luther affirmed to be, as it 
was held or rejected, the test of a falling or a rising church. 

" Immediately, that which the late Edward Irving, in one 
of his sermons, under the name of ' Orations,' calls the ' inge- 

nium perfervidum Scotorum,' burst from Eev. Dr. , 

with something of that zeal for the doctrines of Knox and 
Calvin for which I understand he has been somewhat 
remarkable in his own country. He vehemently declared 
his abhorrence of any such denial of the first and fundamental 
truth of the gospel, evidently taking it somewhat in the light 
of an insult to us as the preachers of that truth. He ended 
by saying, with much force and warmth, that the Apostle Paul 
sometimes condensed the whole of the gospel into a single 
phrase ; and one of these phrases, as expressed in the Epistle 
to the PhiHppians, he commended to the notice of Mr. Law- 
rence, namely, *We are the circumcision which worship 
God in the spirit ; and rejoice in Christ Jesus, and have no 
confidence in the flesh.' 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 257 

" Mr. Lawrence met this strong, and apparently indig- 
nant, and truly honest expression of feeling, with entire 
courtesy and self-command, but with evident and deep emo- 
tion ; and, repressing all expression of displeasure, he gra- 
dually led the conversation to less unwelcome subjects, so 
that our ride ended pleasantly, though the embarrassment 
created by this event continued, in a lessening degree, to its 
close. 

" It will probably add to the interest of the whole transac- 
tion, in your own mind, if I state, not only what you seemed 
aware of on Monday, that your father sent me, a day or two 
after, 'Barr's Help' (I believe is the name of the volume), 
with a very kind and polite note, alluding to what had passed, 
and a paper containing some development of his own reli- 
gious belief; but Rev. Dr. , also, soon after, in alluding 

to the circumstances in a note to me, on another subject, and 
which is now before me, wrote : — 

" ' I regret the warmth with which I did so. Alas ! it is 
my infirmity ; but it was only a momentary flash, for I was 
enabled, through a silent act of prayer, to get my mind 
purged of all heat, before I ventured to resume the conver- 
sation on the vital topic which our good and kind friend him- 
self was led to introduce.' 

" I suspect this will reach you at an hour too late entii-ely 
for the use which you thought might possibly be made of it. 
It may, however, have some little interest, as a further deve- 
lopment of the excellent character of your father ; and it refers 
to a scene of which I have never been in the habit of speak- 
ing to others, but which I shall always remember with great 
interest, as one among many pleasing and profitable recollec- 
tions of him." 

The paper referred to in the preceding communica- 
tion is as follows : — 

33 



258 DIARY AND CORKESPONDENCE. 

" Boston, Nov. 4, 1847. 
" To Rev. G. W. BtAGDEN, D. D. 

"Rev. and dear Sir, — Our interesting ride last Thursday 
has peculiar claims upon me as a teacher and a preacher for 
a better world. To one who knows me well, my uncere- 
monious manner to our friend would not seem so strange ; 
but it was none the less unkind in me to treat him thus. 

" My first impressions are generally the right ones, and 
govern the actions of daily and hourly experience here ; 
and these impressions were entirely favorable to our friend ; 
and my treatment, up to the moment that you " poui-ed your 
oil upon the waters," had been such as I am now well 
pleased with. "But the conversation then commenced ; and 
the lecture, illustrations, arguments, and consequences, were 
all stereotyped in my mind, having been placed there twenty- 
seven years ago by a learned and pious Scotchman, whose 
character came back to my memory like a flash of light. 
It is enough to say that a multitude of matters wholly 
adverse to my first impressions left me no command of my 
courtesies ; and I stopped the conversation. 

" Forty-five years ago, I was an apprentice in a country 
store of extensive business, and was the apothecary of that 
store. The country physicians for twenty miles, and, in 
instances, for more than twenty miles, around, depended on 
that store for their supplies of medicine. A farmer within 
five miles had read about castor-oil being made from beans, 
and, with characteristic enterprise, planted the beans, made 
the oil in the best way he could from the books he read, and 
came to my masters to help him to a market ; assuring them 
it was equal to the imported, and could be sold at much less 
price. We tried it ; and I became well satisfied that it was 
strong enough ; and the doctors found no fault. After a 
time, I was sick ; and the doctor prescribed castor-oil, which 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 259 

I took of our neighbor's make ; and the nausea, distress, 
and pain, were more than I could well endure. For twenty 
years, I never thought of castor-oil without tasting and smell- 
ing it, and, to this day, make up ugly faces when I recur to 
the scene, as you would see if looking on while I write. 

" Castor-oil, however, is a good medicine, and so is 
Scotch Presbyterianism ; but I cannot see my way plain to 
waste what little strength I have in hair-splittings. 

" I believe that our Saviour came among men to do them 
good, and, having performed his mission, has returned to his 
Father and to our Father, to his God and our God ; and if, 
by any means, he will receive me as a poor and needy 
sinner with the ' Well done ' into the society of those whom 
he shall have accepted, I care not what sort of ism I am 
ranked under here. 

" There is much, I think, that may be safely laid aside 
among Christians who are honest, earnest, and self-denying. 
Again I say, I have no hope in isms, but have strong hope 
in the cross of Christ. 

" The little book * I send is a fuller exposition of the 
Kirk's doctrine than our friend's. I have reviewed it, and 
see no reason to alter a prayer or an expression. Return it 
at your leisure, with the two notes of our friend to me since 
our drive. Soon after I left you, I came home, sat down at 
my table to write a note as an apology to him for my rude- 
ness in stopping his discourse, fainted, went to bed ; next 
day, ate three ounces of crusts, rode out, and went to bed 
sick with a cold in my face. For the following forty-eight 
hours, I did not take an ounce of food ; the slightest amount 
of liquid sustained me ; and yesterday was the first day of 
my being a man. To-day, I called to see and apologize to 
you." 

* " Help to Professing Christians. By Rev. John Barr. Published by Perkins 
and Marvin. Boston, 1831." 



260 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

To A Fkiend in Socth Carolina. 

" Boston, June 12, 18o'2. 

" My dear Friend, — The announcement of the death of 
your beloved wife, and the queries and suggestions you 
made, touched me in a tender place. You and your dear 
■wife are separated, it is true ; but she is in the upper room, 
you in the lower. She is with Jesus, where, with his disci- 
ples, he keeps the feast ; and, not long hence, he will say 
to you, 'Come up hither.' Your spirit and hers meet daily 
at the same throne, — hers to praise, yours to pray ; and, 
when you next join her in person, it will be to part no more. 
Is not the prospect such as to gild the way with all those 
charms, which, in our childhood, used to make our hours 
pass too slowly ? 

" My connection with the people of your State, growing 
out of my marriage, has brought me into personal intercourse, 
for more than thirty years past, with a great family connec- 
tion, embracing in its circle many of your distinguished cha- 
racters. All the M. family, of whom your present Governor 
is one, came from the same stock ; and the various ramifica- 
tions of that family at the South include, I suppose, a great 
many thousand souls. I therefore take a lively interest in 
every thing interesting to your people. We have hot heads, 
and so have you ; but I think your people misjudge, when 
they think of setting up an independent government. The 
peculiar institution which is so dear to them will never be 
interfered with by sober, honest men ; but will never be 
allowed to be cai"ried where it is not now, under the Federal 
government. Politicians, like horse-jockeys, strive to cover 
up wind-broken constitutions, as though in full health ; but 
hard driving reveals the defect, and, within thirty years, the 
old Slave States will feel compelled to send their chattels 
away to save themselves from bankruptcy and starvation. I 
have never countenanced these Abolition movements at the 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 261 

North ; and have lately lent a hand to the cause of Coloniza- 
tion, "which is destined to make a greater change in the con- 
dition of the blacks than any event since the Christian 
era 

" You need no new assurance of my interest in, and respect 
for, yourself, and the loved ones around you. I enjoy life 
as few old men do, I believe ; for my family seem to live 
around and for me. My nephew by marriage, FrankKn 
Pierce, seems to be a prominent candidate for the ' White 
House ' for the next four years. He is the soul of honor, and 
an old-fashioned Democrat, born and bred, and to be depended 
on as such ; but, as I am an old-fashioned George Washing- 
ton, John Jay Federalist, from my earliest days, and hope 
to continue to be, I shall prefer one of this stamp to 
him 

" With a heart overflowing, I hardly know where to stop. 
We shall meet in the presence of the Saviour, if we hold fast 
to the hem of his garment ; and I hope may be of the num- 
ber of those whose sins are forgiven. 

" Ever yours, Amos Lawrence." 

During the summer, a small volume appeared, 
entitled " Uncle Toby's Stories on Tobacco." Mr. 
Lawrence read it ; and the views there inculcated so 
nearly coincided with his own, so often expressed 
during his whole life, that he caused two editions, of 
some thousands of copies, to be published and circu- 
lated, principally by the boys of the Mather School. 
On this subject, he writes to President Hopkins, 
under date of Aug 5 : — 

" My two last scraps told their own stories to the children, 
and to-day you will receive a package by express that may 



2Q2 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

require explanation. Uncle Toby has hit the nail on the head 
in telling his tobacco stories to American lads ; and I think 
your students will do good service in carrying them among 
their friends wherever they are, to show them how much bet- 
ter it is to prevent an evil than to remedy it ; and, taking 
school-boys as they are, these stories will do more good than 
any that have been published. I met the author yesterday ac- 
cidentally at the American Sabbath School Union Depository, 
where I had just paid for the fifty copies sent to you, and he 
was very earnest to have me write a few lines for him to 
publish in his book ; but I referred him to the three hundi-ed 
boys of the Mather School, who are full of the matter to help 
other school-boys to do as they are doing. However, I may 
say to him, that, as a school-boy, I was anxious to be manly, 
like the larger boys ; and, by the advice of one, I took a 
quid, and kept it till I was very sick, but did not tell my 
parents what the matter was ; and, from that time to this, 
have never chewed, smoked, or snuffed. To this abstinence 
from its use (and spirit), I owe, under God, my present posi- 
tion in society. Further, I have always given the preference 
to such persons as I have employed, for more than forty 
years past, who have avoided rum and tobacco ; and my 
experience has been such as to confirm me that it is true wis- 
dom to have done so. The evil is growing in a fearfully 
r^pid ratio among us ; and requires the steady course of 
respected and honored men to prevent its spread, by influ- 
encing the school-children of our land against becoming its 
slaves. You will please use the fifty copies in the way you 
think best. If my life is spared, the Mather school-boys will 
be allowed to tell their own experience to the boys of all the 
other public schools in this city and neighborhood. In short, 
I look to these boys influencing three millions of boys within 
the next thu'ty or forty years. Is -not this work worth look- 
ing after ? " 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 263 

The following well-merited tribute to the character 
of a respected citizen, who devoted his life to the pro- 
motion of every good object, is extracted from a note 
written by Mr. Lawrence to the Hon. Benjamin Sea- 
ver, then Mayor of the city, and dated Aug. 23 : — 

" My friend Seaver, — I have desired, for some weeks 
past, to inquire of you some further particulars of the dispo- 
sition our friend Tarbell * made of his property. You men- 
tioned that something would be paid over to A. & A. 
Lawrence, and something to the Old Ladies' Home, which 
institution he helped forward, by his labors and his influence. 
In an important stage of its existence ; and he was called off 
just as he was beginning to enjoy the fruits of his labor, in 
making a multitude of old ladies happy in thus supplying 
them a home for the remainder of their days on earth. Our 
friend has passed on ; but I doubt not that his labors have 
prepared him to enter that world where there is no weariness 
or want, and all sufferings are at an end. I have journeyed 
side by side, for more than threescore years, with our friend ; 
and can say, with truth, that I never knew him guilty of 
a dishonest or dishonorable act, and that his life was a 
practical exponent of his Christian principles. I pray to 
our Father to make me more faithful in doing the work our 
friend had so much at heart, while I can do it. My share 
of the money,t coming from his estate, I shall wish paid over 
to the Old Ladies' Home, and I doubt not brother A. will 
wish the same done with his share. This appropriation will 
increase our friend's happiness, even in his heavenly home ; 

* The late Thomas Tarbell, originally from Groton, Mass. 

t This was a debt contracted by Mr. T., in 182G, amounting, at that time, to 
about SISOO, when he failed in business. The amount of the debt was soon after 
transferred to the "Old Ladies' Home." 



264 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

for the voice from Heaven proclaims, ' Blessed are the dead 
which die in the Lord : they may rest from thek labors, and 
their works do foUow them.' " 

The editor feels some delicacy in inserting the fol- 
lowing, from a gentleman still living, and in our own 
vicinity ; but the tribute to Mr. Lawrence, coming, as 
it does, from a di\'ine so distinguished in all those 
qualities which adorn his own profession, as well as 
for ever)- Christian -sirtue, is too flattering to be omit- 
ted : — 

" Elmwood, Sept. 3. 
" My dear Friend, — I take such paper as happens to be 
near me, in my sick chamber, to thank you for the books and 
pamphlets, which I have read as much as my dim sight and 
weak nerves will allow me at present to read. I wish, when 
you write your fi-iend Dr. Hamilton, you would thank him 
for me for his eloquent and evangelical appeals for Christian 
truth and duty. Tell him I am a Congregational Minister 
of Boston, b,ut no sectarian ; that I was matriculated at the 
University of Edinburgh, fifty years ago, and studied divi- 
nity there under Drs. Hunter, Micklejohn, Moodie, &c., and 
moral philosophy, under Dugald Stewart ; — that my par- 
ticular friends were David Dickson, since Minister of St. 
Cuthbert's, Edinburgh ; David Wilkie, since Minister of Old 
Gray Friar's Church, Edinburgh ; Patrick McFarlane, since 
Minister in Glasgow and Greenock ; Thomas Brown, since 
Professor of Moral Philosophy at Edinburgh j David Brews- 
ter, since Sir David, &c. : most of whom he probably knows. 
Tell him I should be glad of his correspondence, as I have 
that of his friend. Principal Lee, of the University of Edin- 
burgh ; and that we should be glad to see him in Boston. I 
was happy to see your name appended to a petition on the 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 265 

subject of the liquor law, though I always expect to find it 
aipong the advocates of every benevolent enterprise within 
your reach. Your visit did me much good. I have much 
valued your friendship, and your manifestations of respect 
and regard for me. Heaven bless you and yours, and make 
you more and more a blessing ! Come and see me when you 
can, my dear friend. With much affection and respect, 

" Your old friend, Charles Lowell. 

" P. S. — I write with a feeble hand, dim sight, and ner- 
vous temperament." 

In enclosing the preceding note to the Rev. Dr. 
Hamilton, Mr. Lawrence writes, Sept. 4 : — 

" The writer of the foregoing is the Rev. Dr. Lowell, of 
this city, who is broken down in health, but not at all in his 
confidence and hope and joy in the beloved Jesus. Of all 
men I have ever known. Dr. Lowell is one of the brightest 
exemplars of the character and teachings of the Master ; for 
all denominations respect him, and confide in him. For 
more than forty years I have known him ; and, in all the 
relations of a good pastor to his people, I have never known 
a better. I have met him in the sick-chamber, with the 
dying, and in the house of prayer. In the character of a 
teacher, and a leader of the people heavenward, no one 
among us has been more valued. Although I have not been 
a member of his church, he has, in times of great urgency, 
supplied our pulpit, and has always been ready to attend my 
family and friends when asked. I sent him such of your 
writings as I had in store for circulation, ' The Royal 
Preacher ' among them ; and I must say to you, that I think 
no living man is preaching to greater multitudes than you 



266 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

are at this day. I have circulated tens of thousands of your 
tracts and volumes, and, if I am spared, hope to continue 
the good work. Millions of souls will be influenced by 
your labors." 



267 



CHAPTER XXXY 



CORRESPONDENCE. — DIARY. 



From Lady Buxton. 

" NoBTHKUPp's Hill, Sept. 8, 1852. 
" My dear Friend, — Again I have to thank you for your 
kind remembrance of me in your note and little book on the 
abuse of tobacco, and your sympathy with me in my late 
deep anxiety, ending in the removal of my most tenderly 
beloved and valued daughter Priscilla. It pleased God to 
take her to himself on June 18, to the inexpressible loss and 
grief of myself, and her husband and children. We surely 
sorrow with hope ; for she had loved and followed the Lord 
Jesus from her childhood, and had known and obeyed the 
Holy Scriptui-es, which did make her, under the influence of 
the blessed Spirit, wise unto salvation. To her, to live was 
Christ, and therefore to die, gain ; and we are thankful, and 
rejoice for her. Her spirit is with the Lord, beholding 
and sharing his glory, and re-united to her dearest father, 
brothers, and sisters, and many beloved on earth, in joy 
unspeakable. Still, we do and are permitted to mourn. . . . 
Priscilla traced the foundation of her illness to the great 
exertion she used in revising and altering her father's work 
on the remedy for the slave-trade. The stress upon her 
feelings and mind was too great for her susceptible nature. 
1 believe it might be traced further back to her very great 



268 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

efforts to assist her father in his public business ; so that I 
may say, I have had to part with the two most beloved, and 
gifted nearly, I have ever known, for the cause of God. 
But the comfort is intense that they cannot lose the abundant 
recompense of reward given through mercy and favor, not 
for any merits of their own, to those who love and serve the 
Lord. I must thank you most warmly again for the valuable 
gifl; of ' Uncle Tom's Cabin.' "When it arrived, it was un- 
known in this country ; now it is universally read, but sold at 
such a cheap rate, in such poor print, that this very beautiful 
copy is quite sought after. How wonderfully successful a 
work it has proved ! I hope your little book upon tobacco 
may be of use here. I shall send it to my grandsons at 
Rugby. I feair you have been suffering much from bodily 
illness and infirmity, my dear friend. I trust your interest- 
ing cii-cle about you are all well and prospering, and enjoying 
the blessing and presence of the Saviour. With kindest 
regards and affection, I am yours very sincerely, 

" H. Buxton." 

" Sept. 23, 1852. — By a singular coincidence, at the 
same time I received Lady Buxton's - letter, I received one 
from ' Mrs. Sunny Side,' * from her sick-chamber, asking the 
loan of some of Miss Edgeworth's works ; also a note from 
Mrs. Stowe, giving me some information respecting the 
publication of ' Uncle Tom's Cabin ' in England and Ger- 
many ; also a letter from our minister in Portugal ; and, 
three or four hours later, ' Uncle Toby ' called, having spent 
the day in the Mather School, lecturing on tobacco." 

From a letter written about this time, an extract is 

* Mrs. Phelps, wife of Professor Phelps, of Andover, and daughter of Professor 
Stuart, the authoress of " Sunny Side," " Peep at Number Fiye," and other popular 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 269 

made, which is interesting as showing his system of 
diet : — 

" My own wants are next to nothing, as I live on the 
most simple food, — crusts and coffee for breakfast ; crusts 
and champagne for dinner, with never more than three 
ounces of chicken, or two ounces of tender beef, without 
any vegetable, together eight ounces ; coarse wheat-meal 
crusts, and two or three ounces of meat, in the twenty-four 
hours, — beginning hungry, and leaving oflF more hungry. 
I have not sat at table with my family for fifteen years, nor 
eaten a full meal dui'ing that time, and am now more hale 
and hearty than during that whole period." 

To A Laoy in Flobida. 

" Boston, Oct. 14, 1852. 

" Dear Mrs. , — Your deeply interesting note reached 

me within the last half-hour ; and I feel that no time should 
be lost in my reply. My life has been protracted beyond 
all my friends' expectations, and almost beyond my own 
hopes ; yet I enjoy the days with all the zest of early youth, 
and feel myself a spare hand to do such work as the Master 
lays out before me. This of aiding you is one of the things 
for which I am spared ; and I therefore forward one hundred 
dollars, which, if you are not willing to accept, you may use 
for the benefit of some other person or persons at your dis- 
cretion. Your precious brother has passed on ; and, in God's 
good time, I hope to see him face to face, and to receive, 
through the Beloved, the ' Well done ' promised to such as 
have used their Lord's trusts as he approves. I enclose you 

Lieut. 's letter on his return from sea 

" I had a charming ride yesterday with my nephew Frank 
Pierce, and told him I thought he must occupy the White 
House the next term, but that I should go for Scott. Pierce 



270 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

is a fine, spirited fellow, and will do his duty wherever 
placed ; but Scott will be my choice for President of the 
United States. God bless you, my child, and have you ' in 
the hollow of his hand, in these days of trial. 

" Your friend, A. L." 



To THE Hon. Jonathan Phillips. 

" Boston, Oct. 2S, 1852. 
" To my respected and honored Friend, — The changing 
scenes of life sometimes recall with peculiar freshness the 
events and feelings of years long past ; and such is the case 
with me, growing out of the death of our great New Eng- 
land statesman", who has, for a long period of years, been 
looked up to as preaching and teaching the highest duties 
of American citizens with a power rarely equalled, never 
surpassed. He is now suddenly called to the bar of that 
Judge who sees not as man sees, and where mercy, not 
merit, will render the cheering ' Well done ' to all who 
have used their trusts as faithful stewards of theii- Lord, — 
the richest piize to be thought of. Our great man had great 
virtues, and, doubtless, some defects ; • and I pray God that 
the former may be written in the hearts of his countrymen, 
the latter in the sea. Here I begin the story that comes 
over my thoughts. 

" About forty years ago, walking past your father's house, 
with my wife and some of our family friends, on a bright, 
moonlight night, we were led to discuss the character of the 
owner (your honored father) ; some of the party wishing they 
might possess a small part of the property which would 
make them happy, others something else, when my own 
wish was expressed. It was, that I might use whatever 
Providence might allow me to possess as faithfully as your 
father used his possessions, and that I should esteem such a 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 271 

reputation as his a better inheritance for my children than 
the highest political honors the country could bestow. A 
few years later, I was visiting Stafford Springs with my wife, 
and there met you and Mrs. P., and first made your ac- 
quaintance. Still a few years later, I became personally 
acquainted with your father by being chosen a Director of 
the Massachusetts Bank, he being President. Still later, I 
became more intimate with yourself by being a member of 
the Legislature with you, when the seceders from Williams 
College petitioned to be chartered as Amherst College, 
which you opposed by the best speech that was made ; and 
we voted against the separation, and, I believe, acted together 
on all the subjects brought up during that session. Since 
then, which is about thirty years, I have been a successful 
business man, although, for the last twenty years, I have 
been a broken machine, that, by all common experience, 
should have been cast aside. But I am still moving; and 
no period of my life has had more to charm, or has had more 
flowers by the wayside, than my every-day life, with all my 
privations. The great secret of the enjoyment is, that I am 
able to do some fm-ther work, as your father's example 
taught me, when the question was discussed near forty 
years ago. Can you wonder, then, my friend, that I wish 
our names associated in one of the best literary institutions 
in this country ; viz., Williams College ? My interest in 
it seemed to be accidental, but must have been providential ; 
for we cannot tell, till we reach a better world, what influence 
your speech had in directing my especial attention to the 
noble head of the college, when I first met him in a private 
circle in this city ; and, since then, my respect for his cha- 
racter, my love for him as a man and a brother, has caused 
me to feel an interest in his college that I never should have 
felt without this personal intercourse. The two hundred 
young men there need more teachers ; and the college, in 



272 DIAKY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

view of its wants, has appealed to the public for fifty thou- 
sand doUai-s, to place it upon an independent footing 

" There is money enough for all these good objects j and, 
if our worthy citizens can only be made to see that it will 
be returned to them fourfold, in the enjoyment of life in the 
way that never clogs, it will not be thought presumptuous 
in me to advise to such investments. From long observation, 
I am satisfied that we do better by being our own executors, 
than by hoarding large sums for our descendants. Pai-don 
me for thus writing to you ; but knowing, as I do, that the 
college has commenced its appeal for aid, I am sure you will 
excuse me, whether you contribute to its aid or not. With 
great respect, I am, as I have always been, 

■ " Your Friend, Amos La-vvrence. 

« P. S. — If you wish to talk with me, I shall be rejoiced 
to say what I know about the college." 

In his diary of the same date, Mr. Lawrence 

writes : — 

" 6, p.Ai. — My good old friend hag called to see and talk 
with me, and a most agreeable conversation we have had. 
He expressed good wishes for the college, and will subscribe 
a thousand dollars at once, which is a cheering beginning in 
this city. The interest in the College will grow here, when 
people know more about it." 

" Boston, Satxu-day morning, Nov. 13, 1852. — The cir- 
cumstances which have brought me the following letter from 
my valued friend, ' Honest John Davis,' are these : Many 
years ago, I learned, from undoubted sources, that his pecu- 
niary losses, through the agency of others, had so straitened 
him as to decide him to take his two sons from Williams 



DIARY AND COIIRESPONDENCE. 273 

College, which seemed to me a pity ; and I therefore enclosed 
to him five hundred dollars, with a request that he would 
keep his boys in college, and, when his affairs became right 
again, that he might pay the same to the college for some 
future needy pupils. Two or three years afterwards, he said 
he was intending to hand over to the college the five hundred 
dollars, which I advised not to do until it was perfectly con- 
venient for him. The circumstances which now call him out 
are very interesting ; and, to me, the money seems worth ten 
times the amount received in the common business of life. 
Within ten minutes after Mr. Davis's letter was read to me. 
Dr. Peters, the agent of the college to collect funds for its 
necessities, called in to report progress in his work. I imme- 
diately handed over the five hundred dollars from John 
Davis, with a request that he would acknowledge its recep- 
tion to my friend at once." 

" WoHCESTEE, Nov. 12, 1852. 
" My dear Sir, — I have been in Boston but once since 
my return from Washington, and then failed to see you. 
Nevertheless, you are seldom absent from our thoughts. 
You do so much which reminds us of the duties of life, and 
fixes in our minds sentiments of cherished regard and unal- 
terable affection. No one can desire a more enviable distinc- 
tion, a more emphatic name, than he whom all tongues 
proclaim to be the good man ; the man who comprehends 
his mission, and, with unvarying steadiness of purpose, ful- 
fils it. There is such a thing as mental superiority, as ele- 
vated station, as commanding influence, as glory, as honor ; 
and these are sometimes all centered in the same individual : 
but, if that individual has no heait ; if humanity is not mixed 
in his nature ; if he has no ear for the infirmities, the weak- 
nesses, and sufferings of his fellow-beings, — he is like the 
massive, coarse wails of a lofty fortress, having strength. 



274 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

greatness, and power ; but, as a man, he is unfinished. He 
may have much to excite surprise or to overawe, but nothing 
to awaken the finer sensibilities of our nature, or to win our 
love. The divine efflatus has never softened the soul of such 
a man. The heavenly attributes of mercy, brotherly love, 
and charity, have never touched his heart with sympathy for 
his race. He forgets that a fellow-being, however humble, is 
the work of the same God who made him, and that the work of 
the Almighty has a purpose. He forgets the great command 
to love our neighbor. He forgets that all who are stricken 
down with disease, poverty, affliction, or suffering, are our 
neighbors ; and that he who ministers to such, be he Jew or 
Samaritan, is, in the lofty, Scriptural sense, a neighbor. Nei- 
ther the hereditaiy descent of the Levite, nor the purple of 
the priest, makes a neighbor ; but it is he who binds up the 
bleeding wound. This is the act upon which Heaven places 
its seal of approval, as pleasing in the sight of him that is 
perfect. Where there is an absence of purity of heart or 
generous sympathy, the man lacks the most ornate embel- 
lishment of character, that lustrous brightness which is the 
type of heav,en. To minister to the necessities of the humble 
and lowly is the work of God's angels ; and the man who 
follows their example cannot be far from his Maker. You 
have the means of doing good ; but have, what is greater, 
and a more marked distinction, the disposition to do it when 
and where it is needed. Your heart is always alive, and 

your hand untiring 

" Some years ago, you did that for me and mine which 
will command my gratitude while I live. I needed aid to 
educate my children ; and you, in a spirit of marked genero- 
sity, came unasked to my relief. I need not say how deeply, 
how sincerely thankful I was, that one, upon whom I had no 
claim, should manifest so generous a spirit. After a while, 
times changed somewhat for the better ; and, feeling that I 



niARY AND C0REE3P0NDENCE. 275 

was able to do it, I asked permission to restore the sum 
advanced, that you, to whom it belonged, might have the 
disposition of it, since it had performed with me the good 
that was intended. You kindly gave me leave to hand it 
over to the college, but advised me to take my own time, 
and suit my convenience. That time has now come ; and, 
as you are again extending to the college your sustaining 
ai'm, and may wish to take this matter into the account, I 
herewith enclose a check for five hundred dollars, with the 
renewed thanks of myself and my wife for the great and 
generous service which you have done lis. We shall, in all 
respects, have profited greatly by it ; and have no wish to 
cancel our obligations by this act, but to recognize them in 
their fullest extent. I am, most truly and faithfully, 
" Your Friend and obedient Servant, 

" John Davis." 

Some inquiries having been made of Mr. Lawrence, 
respecting the early history of the Bunker-Hill Monu- 
ment, he writes, on the 12th of November, in a short 
note : — 

" Deal" Son, — You may be glad to copy the twelfth sec- 
tion of my will, executed in 1833. This information is not 
before the world, but may be interesting to your children. 
I could have finished the monument, sick as I was, at any 
time before Edmund Dwight's death, by enlisting with him, 
who made me the offer, to join a small number of friends 
(three Appletons, Robert G. Shaw, and us three Lawrences), 
without saying, ' by your leave,' to the public." 



276 



CHAPTER XXXVT. 



MR. LA\NTIENCE SERVES AS PRESIDENTIAL ELECTOR. — GEN. 
FRANKLIN PIERCE. — SUDDEN DEATH. — FUNERAL. 



In November, Mr. Lawrence, with Robert G. Shaw, 
Esq., were chosen Presidential Electors for the district 
in which they resided. Both, at that time, were in 
the enjoyment of their usual health, and yet both 
were removed within a few months by death. The 
Electoral CoUege was convened in the State House 
at Boston, in December ; and Mr. Lawrence has 
noticed the' event by a memorandum, endorsed upon 
•his commission of Elector, as follows : — 

" Dec. 1. — I have attended to the duty, and have given 
my vote to Winfield Scott for President, and WilUam A. 
Graham for Vice-President." 

He did not add, that, before lea\dng the State 
House, he gave the customary fee paid in such cases 
towards freeing the family of a negro from slavery. 

But little is found in the handwiiting of Mr. Law- 
rence for the month of December, except his usual 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 277 

record of donations to charitable objects. He seems 
to have written but few letters, which may in part be 
accounted for by having had his time much occupied 
by a most agreeable intercourse with Gen. Franklin 
Pierce, who, with his family, were his guests during a 
part of the month. That gentleman had for many 
years been on terms of intimate friendship with Mr. 
Lawrence, and had kept up a familiar correspond- 
ence from Washington and elsewhere, which no poli- 
tical differences had abated. He had always been a 
favorite ; and now, having been elected to the Presi- 
dential chair, and engaged in plans for his future 
administration, it may be imagined what interest this 
intercourse excited in Mr. Lawrence, deeply concerned 
as he was in every movement that tended to promote 
the political and moral welfare of the country. Many 
excursions were made to the interesting spots and 
charitable institutions of Boston and its vicinity, 
during this visit, which has a melancholy interest 
from the events which immediately followed it. On 
the 26th, General and Mrs. Pierce left Boston for 
their home at Concord, N.H., with the intention of 
spending a few days with their friends at Andover. 
They were accompanied by their only child Benjamin, 
a bright and promising boy, twelve years of age, 
whose melancholy death, but a few days afterwards, 
will give an interest to the following note, which he 
wrote to Mr. Lawrence in acknowledgment of a little 
token of remembrance : — 



278 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

"Andover, Dec. 27, 1852. 
" Dear Uncle Lawrence, — I admire the beautiful pencil 
you sent me, and I think I shall find it very useful. I shall 
keep it very carefully for your sake, and I hope that I may 
learn to write all the better with it. It was kind in you to 
write such a good little note, too ; and I see that being 
industrious while you were young enables you to be kind 
and benevolent now that you are old. I think that you 
have given me very good advice, and I hope I shall jjrofit 
by it. So, dear uncle, with much love to aunt, I am 

"Your affectionate nephew, B. Pierce." 



The brief history of this promising boy, who exhi- 
bited a maturity and thoughtfulness far beyond his 
years, is soon told. The news of Mr. Lawrence's 
death reached Andover on Friday, the last day of 
December ; and General Pierce accordingly prolonged 
his visit, in order to be present at the funeral services, 
which were to be performed in Boston, on Tuesday, 
the 4th of January. On the Thursday following, he, 
with Mrs. Pierce and his son, took the cars at Andover, 
on their return home. A few minutes after starting, 
the cars were precipitated down a steep bank, among 
the rocks, causing the instant death of Benjamin, 
and bruising the father and many other passengers 
severely. The accident sent a thrill of sympathy 
throughout the Union, and cast a withering blight 
upon the prospects of the bereaved parents, which, 
amidst all earthly distinctions, can never be forgotten, 
and which has perhaps rendered more irksome the 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 279 

great and unceasing responsibilities of high official 
station. 

" Dec. 28. — I sent a large bundle of clothing materials, 
books, and other items, with sixty dollars, by steamer for 
Bangor, to Professor Pond, of Bangor Theological Seminary, 
for the students. Also gave a parcel, costing twenty-five 

dollars, to Mrs. , who is a Groton girl, and now having 

twins, making twenty chUdi'en : is very poor. 

" Dec. 30. — To Professor , by dear S., one hundred 

dollars. Books and items to-day, five dollars." 

These were his last entries. 

On the afternoon of the above date, the writer, in 
his usual walk, passed Mr. Lawrence's door with the 
intention of calling on his return, but, after pro- 
ceeding a few steps, decided, from some unaccountable 
motive, to give up the accustomed exercise, and pass 
the time with his father. Mr. Lawrence appeared in 
excellent health and spirits ; and nearly an hour was 
agreeably spent in discussing the topics of the day. 
He seemed more than usually communicative ; and, 
although always kind and affectionate, there was, on 
this occasion, an unusual softness of manner, and 
tenderness of expression, which cannot be forgotten. 
The last topic touched upon was the character of a 
prominent statesman, just deceased, and the evidence 
which he had given of preparation for an exchange 
of worlds. He spoke somewhat fully upon the 
nature of such preparation, and expressed a strong 



280 DIARY AND CORKESPONIJEN'CE. 

hope, that, in the present instance, the exchange 
had been a happy one. 

In the latter part of the evening, Mr. Lawrence 
addressed to his friend, Prof Packard, of Bowdoin 
College, the following note, in reply to some questions 
asked by that gentleman in regard to the Bunker-Hill 
Monument, of which he was preparing a history for 
publication among the records of the Maine Historical 
Society : — 

" Boston, Dec. 30, 1852, evening. 
" My dear Friend, — Your letter of Tuesday reached me 
just before my' morning excursion to Longwood to see our 
loved one there. In reply to your first query, I answer, 
that Mr. E. Everett presented a design of Bunker-Hill 
Monument, which was very classic, and was supported by 
Col. Perkins and Gen. Dearborn, I believe, and perhaps one 
or two more. Young Greenough (Horatio), then a student 
of Harvard College, sent in a plan with an essay, that mani- 
fested extragrdinaiy talents, and was substantially adopted, 
although the column was amended by, the talents, taste, and 
influence of Loammi Baldwin, one of our directors. The 
discussion of the model was very interesting ; and, among 
the whole mass of plans, this of Mr. Everett and Mr. Bald- 
win, or, as I before said, a modification of Greenough's, 
were the only ones that were thought of Mr. Everett, and 
those who favored his classic plan, were very cordial in theii- 
support of the plan of the monument as it is, very soon after 
its adoption. Mr. Ticknor was very active in support of 
the plan as adopted ; and I have a strong impression that 
young Greenough's arguments were wholly just, and, abating 
some assertions which seemed a little strong for a mere 
college-lad, were true and unexceptionable. I write from 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 281 

memory, and not from overlooking the plans carefully since 
the time they were considered. Young Greenough I felt a 
deep interest in, and advanced money to his father to allow 
him to go abroad to study, which has been repaid since his 
father's death. Here I have an interesting story to tell you 
of this debt, which I wished to cancel, that the widow might 
receive the amount. Mr. Greenough was near his end, and 
deeply affected, but fully persuaded, that, by the provisions 
of his will, his widow would soon have an ample income, 
and declined the offer. It has turned out better than he 
ever anticipated. The books shall go forwai'd, as you re- 
quested. All our family, 'kith and kin,' are pretty well. 
The President elect has, I think, the hardest time, being 
overworked ; and, as we ai'e now without any one, we shall 
be rejoiced to see you here. Pray, come. I shall write again 
when I send the ' red book ' you request. 

" With love to all, N. and I join ; and I bid you adieu. 
" From your friend, 

"Amos Lawrence. 

" To Prof. Packakd, Brunswick, Me." 

The above letter was folded, directed, and left upon 
his table, and doubtless contained the last words he 
ever wrote. 

After the usual family devotions, he retired at 
about ten o'clock, and, before his attendant left the 
room, asked a few questions relating to the situation 
of a poor family which he had relieved a day or two 
before. Mrs. Lawrence had been in an adjoining 
room, and, on returning, found him lying quietly, and 
apparently engaged in silent prayer. She did not, 
therefore, disturb him, but retired for the night 

36 



282 DIARY AND CORRESFONDE^•CE. 

without speaking. In less than two hours, she was 
awakened by one of his usual attacks. Remedies 
were applied ; but, no rallying symptoms appearing, 
the physician and family were summoned. All that 
medical skill could do was in vain ; and, at a quarter 
past twelve, on the last day of the year, he qviietly 
breathed his last, without having awakened to con- 
sciousness after his first sleep. 

All his temporal affairs seemed to have been ar- 
ranged in view of this event. The partnership with 
his brother, which had existed for nearly forty years, 
was dissolved- in that way which he had resolved in 
former years should alone terminate it. From vari- 
ous prudential reasons, however, he had changed his 
opinion, and had decided to withdraw from aU busi- 
ness relations, and accordingly furnished the adver- 
tisement, which was to appear on the next day in the 
public prints, annoimcing his withdi^awal. Four days 
previous, he had executed a codicil to his wiU, and 
thus seemed to have settled his concerns with the 
closing year. The summons did not find him unpre- 
pared; for it was such as he had long expected, 
and had alluded to many times in his conversation, 
as well as in his letters to friends. The plans of 
each day were made with reference to such a call. 
Nor can we doubt that he was, in the highest sense, 
prepared to exchange what he sometimes was per- 
mitted to call " the heaven on earth " for that higher 
heaven where so many of his most cherished objects 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 283 

of earthly affection had preceded him. On the morn- 
ing of his death, the editor found upon his tahle the 
following lines, which had been copied by him a few 
days previous : — 

" Vital spark of heavenly flame, 
Quit, oh quit, tliis mortal frame ! 
TrembUng, hoping, lingering, flying, — 
Oh the pain, the bliss, of dying ! 
Cease, fond nature, — cease the strife. 
And let me languish into life. 
Hark ! " 

It would almost seem that a vision of the angel- 
messenger had been afforded, and that the sound 
of his distant footsteps had fallen upon his ear ; 
for, with the unfinished line, the pen thus abruptly 
stops. 

The funeral ceremonies were performed on Tues- 
day, the 4th of January. A prayer was first offered 
before the body was taken from the house, in the 
presence of the family and friends of the deceased, 
by the Rev. A. H. Vinton, D. D., Rector of St. Paul's 
Church. Public exercises in Brattle-street Church 
were then performed, in the presence of a crowded 
congregation, composed of the numerous friends and 
former associates of the deceased, clergymen of all 
denominations, and large numbers representing the 
various professions and trades of the community. 

The religious services were conducted by three of 
Mr. Lawrence's most intimate and valued friends, 
representing three different denominations. These 



284 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

were the Rev. Dr. Lotlirop, pastor of Brattle-street 
Church ; the Rev. Dr. Hopkins, President of Williams 
College ; and the Rev. Dr. Sharp, pastor of the Bap- 
tist Society in Charles Street. A beautiful and appro- 
priate hjTnn was sung by the members of the Lawrence 
Association, from the- Mather School, who surrounded 
the coffin, and, at the conclusion of the hyTan, covered 
it with flowers. The body, followed by a large pro- 
cession of mourning friends, was then conveyed to 
Mount Auburn, and deposited by the side of the loved 
ones who had preceded him, and under the shade of 
the " Old Oak," where may it rest imtU summoned to 
the presence of that Saviour whose example and pre- 
cepts he so much loved on earth, and through whom 
alone he looked for happiness in heaven ! 



285 



CHAPTEK XXXVII. 



SKETCH OF CHARACTER BY REV. DRS. LOTHROP AND 
HOPKINS. 



The correspondence in the preceding pages will per- 
haps give a clearer view of the character of Mr. Law- 
rence than any thing which can be adduced by others. 
It may not be amiss, however, to quote what has been 
written by two of his most intimate friends, who had 
the most ample means of forming a just estimate of 
the man, and of the motives by which he was actuated. 
Dr. Lothrop, in his sermon preached on the Sunday 
after the funeral, says : — 

" I have intimated that Mr. Lawrence was intellectually 
great. I think he was so. By this, I do not mean he was a 
scholar or learned man, with a mind developed and disci- 
plined by severe training, and enlarged and enriched by 
varied culture in the various departments of human thought 
and study. This, we know, he was not ; although he was a 
man of considerable reading, who loved and appreciated the 
best books in English literature. But I mean that he was a 
man of great native vigor of intellect, whose mind was clear, 
strong, comprehensive in its grasp, penetrating, far-reaching 



286 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

in its observation, discerning and discriminating in its judg- 
ments, sagacious in its conclusions ; a mind, which., if 
enriched by the requisite culture, and directed to such 
objects, would have made him eminent in any of the walks 
of literary or professional life, as, without that culture, it did 
make him eminent in those walks of practical, commercial life 
to which he did du'cct it. I mention this, not to dwell upon 
it, but simply because some who have known him little, and 
that only since disease had somewhat sapped his strength, 
may not do him justice in this respect. Those who remem- 
ber his eaidy manhood ; who saw the strong, bold, and xagor- 
ous tread with which he walked forward to his rightful place 
among the merchants of the city ; those who remember the 
sagacity of his eliterprises, his quick and accurate discernment 
of character, and the commanding influence he exercised over 
others ; the ease and rapidity with which he managed the 
concerns of a large commercial establishment, and decided 
and despatched the most important commercial negociation, 
— these will be ready to admit that he was intellectually a 
strong man. To the last, this xigoi of intellect showed itself ; 
if not always in his conversation, yet always in his letters, 
many of which will be found to have a force of thought, a 
fulness of wisdom and sound judgment, a terse, epigramma- 
tic comprehensiveness of expression, of which no man, how- 
ever distinguished by his learning and scholai'ship, would 
have need to be ashamed. The merchants of this city have 
ever been distinguished, I believe, for their integrity and 
benevolence. Nowhere is wealth acquii-ed by a more honest 
and healthy activity ; nowhere is a larger portion of it 
devoted to all the objects which a wise philanthropy, an 
' extended patriotism, and a tender Christian sympathy, would 
foster and promote. jMr. Lawrence was conspicuous for 
these qualities. His integrity, I may ventui-e to say, stands 
absolutely unimpeached, without spot or blemish. His his- 



DIAKY AND CORKESPONDENCE. 287 

tory, as a merchant, from first to last, will bear the strictest 
scrutiny. Its minutest incidents, which have faded from the 
memory of those concerned ; its most secret acts, those of 
which no human eye could take knowledge, — might all be 
brought into the light before us ; and like those, I trust, of 
many of his fraternity, they would seem only to illustrate 
the purity and integrity of his principles, the conscientious 
regard to truth and right and justice with which he conducted 
all the negociations of business, and all the affairs of his life. 
He seemed ever to me to have a reverence for right, unal- 
loyed, unfaltering, supreme ; a moral perception and a moral 
sensibility, which kept him from deviating a hair's breadth 
from what he saw and felt to be his duty. It was this that 
constituted the strength of his character, and was one of the 
great secrets of his success. It was this that secured him, 
when a young man, the entire confidence, and an almost 
unlimited use of capital, of some of the wealthiest and best 
men of that day 

" The prominent feature in Mr. Lawrence's life and charac- 
ter, its inspiration and its guide, was religion ; religious faith, 
affection, and hope. He loved God, and therefore he loved 
all God's creatures. He believed in Christ, as the jjromised 
Messiah and Saviour of the world; and therefore found 
peace and strength to his soul, amid all the perils, duties, 
and sorrows of life 

'• There was nothing narrow or sectarian about Mr. Law- 
rence's religious opinions or feelings. He had a large, catho- 
lic spirit, which embraced within the arms of its love, and of 
its pecuniary bounty also when needed, all denominations 
of Christians ; and it is to be hoped that the influence of his 
example and character has done something, and will continue 
to do more, to rebuke that bigotry which ' makes its own 
light the measure of another's illumination.' He took no 
pleasure in religious disputes or discussions. The practical 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 



in Christianity was what interested him. His great aim was 
to illustrate his faith by his daily walk, and authenticate his 
creed by a life of practical usefulness, constant benevolence, 
and cheerful piety. This aim he successfully accomplished, 
to the conviction of persons of all creeds and of every name. 
These will all give him a name in the church universal ; will 
all admit that he was a noble specimen of a true Christian, 
— a loving and believing disciple, who had the very spirit of 
his Master. That spirit pervaded his daily life, and formed 
the moral atmosphere in which he lived and breathed. It 
quickened in him all holy, devout, and pious affections ; gave 
him a profound reverence, a cheei-ful submission, a bright 
and glorious hope, — a hope that crowned every hour with 
gladness, robbed death of all terrors, and, in his soul, brought 
heaven down to earth." 

The following extracts are taken from the sermon 
by President Hopkins, before the students of Wil- 
liams College, — a sermon which has been already 
alluded to :, — 

" Having thus spoken of the use of his property by Mr. 
Lawrence, I observe that it was distinguished by the three 
chai'acteristics which seem to me essential to the most perfect 
accomplishment of the ends of benevolence, and that in two 
of these he was pre-eminent. 

" The first of these is, that he gave the money in his life- 
time. No man, I presume, has lived on this continent, who 
has approximated him in the amount thus given ; and in 
' this course there are principles involved which deserve the 
careful attention of those who would act conscientiously, and 
with the highest wisdom. There may doubtless be good 
reasons why property destined for benevolent uses should be 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 289 

retained till death, and he Is justly honored who then gives 
it a wise direction ; but giving thus cannot furnish either the 
same test or discipline of character, or the same enjoyment, 
nor can it always accomplish the same ends. By his course, 
Mr. Lawrence put his money to its true work long before it 
could have done any thing on the principle of accumulation ; 
and to a work, too, to which it never could have been put in 
any other way. He made it sure also that that work should 
be done j and had the pleasure of seeing its results, and of 
knowing that through it he became the object of gratitude 
and affection. So doing, he showed that he stood completely 
above that tendency to accumulate which seems to form the 
chief end of most successful business men ; and wliich, unless 
strongly counteracted, narrows itself into avarice, as old age 
comes on, almost with the certainty of a natural law. He 
did stand completely above this. No one could know him, 
without perceiving, that, in his giving, there was no rem- 
nant of grudging or reluctance ; that he gave, not only freely, 
but with gladness, as if it were the appropriate action of a 
vital energy. And in so doing, and in witnessing the results, 
and in the atmosphere of sympathy and love thus created, 
there was a test and a discipUne and an enjoyment, as well 
as a benefit to others, that could have been reached in no 
other way. 

" The second peculiarity in the bounty of Mr. Lawrence, 
and in which he was pre-eminent, was the personal atten- 
tion and sympathy which he bestowed with it. He had in 
his house a room where he kept stores of useful articles 
for distribution. He made up the bundle ; he directed the 
package. No detail was overlooked. He remembered the 
children, and designated for each the toy, the book, the ele- 
gant gift. He thought of every want, and was ingenious 
and happy in devising appropriate gifts. In this attention 
to the minutest token of regard, while, at the same time, he 
37 



290 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

could give away thousands like a prince, I have known no 
one like him. And, if the gift was appropriate, the manner 
of giving was not less so. There was in this the nicest 
appreciation of the feelings of others, and an intuitive per- 
ception of 'delicacy and propriety. These were the charac- 
teristics that gave him a hold upon the hearts of many, and 
made his death really felt as that of few other men in Boston 
could have been. In this, we find not a little of the utility, 
and much of the beauty, of charity. Even in his human 
life, man does not live by bread alone, but by sympathy and 
the play of reciprocal affection, and is often more touched 
by the kindness than by the relief. Only this sympathy it 
is that can estabUsh the right relation between the rich and 
the poor ; and- the necessity for this can be superseded by 
no legal provision. This only can neutralize the repellent 
and aggressive tendencies of individuals and of classes, and 
make society a brotherhood, where the various inequalities 
shall work out moral good, and where acts of mutual kind- 
ness and helpfulness may pass and repass, as upon a golden 
chain, during a brief pilgrimage and scene of probation. It 
is a great and a good thing for a rich man to set the stream 
of chai-ity in motion, to employ an agent, to send a check, 
to found an asylum, to endow a professorship, to open a 
fountain that shall flow for ages ; but it is as different from 
sympathy with present suffeiing, and the relief of immediate 
want, as the building of a dam to turn a factory by one great 
sluiceway is fi'om the irrigation of the fields. By Mr. Law- 
rence both were done. 

" The third characteristic referred to of the bounty of 
Mr. Lawrence was, that he gave as a Christian man, — from 
, a sense of religious obligation. Not that all his gifts had a 
religious aspect : he gave gifts of friendship and of affection. 
There was a large enclosure, where the affections walked 
foremost, and where, though they asked leave of Duty, they 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 291 

yet received no prompting from her. Whether he always 
drew this line rightly ; whether, in the measure and direction 
of his charities, he was always right ; whether so much of 
diffusion and individuality was wise, — it is not for me to 
say. Certain it is, that this form of charity holds a place in 
the church now less prominent relatively than it did in the 
eai-ly ages ; and it may be that the proportions of Christian 
character, in portions of the church, need to be remodelled 
and recast in this respect. These ai-e questions for each 
individual. It is sufficient to know that Mr. Lawrence 
looked the great doctrine of stewardship full in the face, and 
prayed earnestly over it, and responded to it practically, as 

few have done 

" Undoubtedly, he was a man of great original powers. 
On this point, I have had but one opinion since knowing 
him. His mind was not speculative, discursive, metaphysi- 
cal : but, in the high moral qualities j in decision and energy ; 
in intuition, perception, and sound, practical judgment; in 
the sensibility and affections, and in the imagination, — he 
was great. Like all remarkable men who are not one-sided, 
he had large faculties, which found their harmony in their 
conflict, or rather in their balance. He was quick and ten- 
der in his feelings, yet firm ; ardent in his affections, yet 
judicious ; lai'ge in his gifts, yet discriminating ; he was a 
keen observer, yet kind in his feelings ; he had a fertile and 
shaping imagination : he built air-castles, and they vanished, 
and then he built others ; but, when he decided to build any 
thing on the ground, it was well-planned and promptly 
finished. His tastes were natural and simple, his habits 
plain, and his feelings always fresh, genuine, and youthful. 
Not even the smell of the fire of prosperity had passed on 
him. He shunned notoriety. He had a strong repugnance 
to all affectation and pretence, ,and misplaced finery. A 
young man with rings on his fingers had small chance of 



292 DIARY AND COKUESrONDENCE. 

favor or employment from him. He was impatient of talk 
when action was called for, and of all attempts to substitute 
talk for action. His command over the English language, 
especially in writing, indicated his power. Style is no me- 
chanical product, that can be formed by rules, but is the 
outgrowth and image of the mind ; and his had often great 
felicity and strength. When he wrote under the impulse of 
his feelings, he seemed to impregnate the very paper, and 
make it redolent of them. He loved nature ; and, instead of 
becoming insensible to it as years came on, it seemed rather 
to open upon him like a new revelation. It was fuU of life 
and of teaching, and the charms of natural beauty were 
heightened by those associations which his quick imagination 
connected with its objects and scenes. After the death of 
two of his children, he says : ' Dear S. and E. speak in words 
without sound thi-ough every breeze, and in every flower, 
and in the fragrance of every perfume from the fields or the 
trees.' Years ago, after a long confinement, with little hope 
of recovery, he visited, when first able to get out, the Pano- 
rama of Jerusalem, then on exhibition in Boston, and re- 
mained there till the scene took full possession of his mind. 
Shortly after, on a fine day, he rode out to Brookline ; and, 
as returning health threw over those hills a mantle of beauty 
that he had never seen before, they were immediately asso- 
ciated in his mind with the Panorama of Jerusalem, and then 
with the glories of the Jerusalem above. This association 
was indissoluble, and he would take his friends out to see 
his ' Mount Zion.' In 1850, he says, ' It really seems to me 
like the sides of Mount Zion, and that I can cling to them as 

I view them.' 

, " He was a deeply religious man. His trust in God, and 
his hope of salvation through Christ, were the basis of his 
character. He believed in the providence of God as con- 
cerned in all events, and as discriminating and retributive in 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 293 

this world. He felt that he could trust God in his provi- 
dence, where he could not see. * The events of my life,' he 
writes, ' have been so far ordered in a way to make me feel 
that I know nothing at the time, except that a Father rules ; 
and his discipline, however severe, is never more so than is 
required.' He believed in the Bible, and saw rightly its 
relation to all our blessings. ' What,' he writes again, 
' should we do, if the Bible were not the foundation of our 
self-government ? and what will become of us, when we wil- 
fully and wickedly cast it behind us ? ' He read the Bible 
morning and evening in his family, and prayed with them ; 
and it may aid those who are acquainted with the prayers of 
Thornton, in forming a conception of his religious character, 
to know that he used them. Family religion he esteemed as 
above all price ; and, when he first learned that a beloved 
relative had established family worship, he wept for joy. 
He distributed religious books very extensively, chiefly those 
of the American Tract Society, and of the American Sunday 

School Union Of creeds held in the understanding, but 

not influencing the life, he thought little ; and the tendency 
of his mind was to practical rather than doctrinal views. He 
believed in our Lord Jesus Christ as a Saviour, and trusted 
in him for salvation. He was a man of habitual prayer. 
The last time I visited him, he said to me, that he had been 
restless during the night, and that the only way in which he 
could 'get quieted was by getting near to God,' and that 
he went to sleep repeating a prayer. During the same visit, 
he spoke strongly of his readiness, and even of his desire, to 
depart. He viewed death with tranquillity and hope and 
preparation, for it was habitual with him. "What need I say 
more ? At midnight the summons came, and his work was 
done." 



294 



CHAPTEE XXXVIII. 



CONCLUSION. 



Mr. Lawrence was of about the medium height, 
and, until reduced by sickness, was erect in person, 
and active and vigorous in his movements. The 
expression of his countenance was mild and cheerful, 
partaking of that benevolent cast which one would 
have been led to expect from the tenor of his daily life. 
His affections were warm, and his feelings quick and 
ardent. His temperament Avas of a nervous character, 
thereby inclining him to impatience. With this de- 
fect he had to struggle much in early life. It is 
related of him, that he once, by some hasty reply, 
■ wounded the sensitive feelings of a cherished sister, 
who afterwards died ; and so much did he regret his 
impatience, that he made a resolution to persevere in 
his efforts until he had conquered the fault. A ^reat 
change was soon remarked in him in this respect ; so 
much so, that a relative, who passed several months 
under his roof during his early married life, was 
surprised at not seeing the least evidence of this 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 295 

tendency. During his latter years, when weakened 
by disease, and when his nervous system had been 
shattered by his violent and peculiar attacks of ill- 
ness, he had more difficulty in controlling his feelings 
and expressions. On the second, sober thought, 
however, no one could have been more ready to con- 
fess the fault, and to make such reparation as the 
case demanded. 

His daily actions were guided by the most exalted 
sense of right and wrong ; and, in his strict sense of 
justice, Aristides himself could not surpass him. He 
Avas a living example of a successful merchant, who 
had, from the earliest period of his business career, 
risen above all artifice, and had never been willing to 
turn to his own advantage the ignorance or misfor- 
tune of others. He demonstrated in his own case 
the possibility of success, while practising the highest 
standard of moral obligation. He had ever com- 
manded the confidence of those around him. When 
an apprentice in his native town, many of his cus- 
tomers relied upon his judgment rather than their 
own. He never deceived them, and early adopted as 
his rule of life, to do to others as he would have 
them do to him. Thus he stood high in the confi- 
dence, as well as in the estimation, of his neighbors. 
What " Amos " said was right, and no one could 
gainsay. 

If any one thing was, more than another, the 
means of promoting his success in life, we should say 



296 DIARi' AND COKRESPONDENCE. 

it was this faculty of commanding the confidence of 
others. To this can be traced the prosperity of his 
earliest business years ; and, as his sphere enlarged, 
and his financial operations were extended, the same 
feeling of confidence gave him the unlimited command 
of the means of some of the wealthiest capitalists in 
New England, who, through the most critical seasons 
in the mercantile world, placed implicit confidence in 
the house of which he was the senior partner. 

Mr. Lawrence had no fiuency in conversation. His 
mind was ever active ; but the volume of thought 
found no corresponding channel of utterance. The 
very number of ideas seemed to impede the power of 
expression. 

Had his talents been devoted to literary or scien- 
tific pursuits, he would have earned distinction by his 
pen. His mind was not of that logical cast, which, 
from patient reasoning, can deduce effects from a 
succession of causes ; but arrived at its conclusions 
by a kind of intuition, somewhat like those rare 
instances of mathematicians who solve a difficult 
prpblem, and yet can give no account of the mental 
process by which the solution has been reached. 

As a husband and father, he was ever kind and 
affectionate. He was domestic in his tastes, and found 
his gijeatest enjoyment in his home. Here he was 
eminently favored, and ever found the warmest sym- 
pathy, and that considerate care and kindness so 
necessary, in latter years, to his feeble health. No 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 297 

one who has read the preceding correspondence can 
have failed to see the interest which he ever took in 
all that concerned the welfare of those whom Provi- 
dence had committed to his keeping. His letters to 
his children would fill many volumes, and are in 
themselves an enduring testimony to his fidelity and 
watchful care during a long series of years. His 
motto was, " Line upon line, precept upon precept ; " 
and thus his constant aim was to impress upon then- 
minds the great principles of religion and morality. 
No parent could be more indulgent when such indul- 
gence was consistent with the true welfare of his 
children, or more resolute in denying what was hurt- 
ful. Their present happiness was a great object ; but 
his desire for their ultimate good was still greater. 

As a friend, he was most faithful and sympathizing ; 
and many now living can testify to the value of his 
friendship. Few, perhaps, have had more friends. 
Their afiection for him was not founded so much 
upon gratitude for his constantly recurring favors, as 
upon the warm sympathy and afiection >vith which 
his heart was filled toward them and theirs. 

As a citizen, his views were comprehensive, and 
were bounded by no lines of sectional or party 
feeling. He was most deeply interested in all that 
concerned the honor and prosperity of his country, 
and keenly sensitive to the injury infiicted by such 
measures as tended to depreciate her standing in the 
estimation of other nations, or of good men among 



298 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

her own citizens. He was a true patriot, and had 
adopted the views and aims of the best men of the 
republic in former days, whUe he viewed with distrust 
many of the popular movements of more modem 
times. From his father he had inherited the most 
profound veneration for Gen. Washington, and faith 
in his public policy; while the political principles of 
Alexander Hamilton and John Jay were those alone 
by which he thought the permanent happiness and 
prosperity of the country could be secui'ed. 

As a Christian, he endeavored to walk in the foot- 
steps of his Master. He had no taste for the discus- 
sion of those minor points of doctrine upon which 
good men so often diifer, but embraced with all his 
heart the revealed truths of the gospel, which the 
great body of Christians can unite in upholding. He 
sought those fields of labor where all can meet, rather 
than those which are hedged in by the dividing lines 
of sect and party. 

He reverenced the Bible, and, from the first chapter 
of the Old Testament to the last chapter of the New, 
received it as the inspu-ed Word of God. This was 
his sheet-anchor ; and to doubt was, in his view, to 
leave a safe and peaceful haven, to embark upon an 
unknown ocean of danger and uncertainty. 

Religion was for him a practical thing for every- 
' day use, consisting not so much in frames and 
emotions as in the steady and persevering perform- 
ance of the daUy duties of life. His view of duty 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 299 

did not limit him to the common obligations of mo- 
rality, but included the highest sense of duty towards 
God ; or, as he has expressed it in one of his early 
letters, " to be a moral man merely, is not to be a 
Christian." He was an active helper in all that 
tended to promote the cause of Christianity among 
nations, as well as to promote spiritual progress 
among individuals. The Christian banner, ia his 
view, covered many denominations ; and, with this 
belief, his charities were du'ected to the buUdiag up 
of institutions under the influence of the various 
sects differing from that under which he himself was 
classed. 

What has been said of John Thornton might be 
applied to him : — 

" He was a merchant renowned in his generation for a 
munificence more than princely. He was one of those rare 
men in whom the desii-e to relieve distress assumes the form 
of a master-passion. Conscious of no aims but such as may 
invite the scrutiny of God and man, he pursued them after 
his own fearless fashion, yielding to every honest impulse, 
choosing his associates in scorn of mere worldly precepts, 
and worshipping with any fellow-Christian whose heart beat 
in unison with his own, however inharmonious might be 
some of the articles of their respective creeds. His benevo- 
lence was as imsectarian as his general habits ; and he stood 
ready to assist a beneficent design in every party, but would 
be the creature of none. He not only gave largely, but he 
gave wisely. He kept a regular account (not for ostentation, 
or the gratification of vanity, but for method) of every 



300 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

pound he gave. With him, his givings were made a matter 
of business, as Cowper says, in an ' Elegy ' he wrote upon 
him, — 

' Thou hadst an industry in doing good, 
Restless as his who toils and sweats for food.' " 

Of Mr. Lawrence's religious opinions respecting 
those doctrinal points upon which Christians are 
divided, the writer will not speak ; though, from 
repeated conversations with his father on the subject, 
in the houi's of health as well as of sickness, he 
might consistently do so. Rather than make asser- 
tions which might lead to discussion, it is more 
grateful to his feelings to leave the subject to the 
unbiassed judgment of those who shall read the 
preceding correspondence. 

Let it rather be the aim of all who loved and 
honored him in life to imitate his example, now that 
he is dead. They may rejoice that they were per- 
mitted to claim as a relative, and to have daily 
intercourse with one who has exhibited, in such an 
abundant degree, those fruits which are the truest 
and best evidence of a genuine faith. 

In completing this volume, the editor feels that he 
has fulfilled a sacred trust ; and his great regret is, 
that the work could not have been undertaken by 
some one more fitted, by his qualifications and past 
'experience, to do justice to the subject. For reasons 
given in the Preface, this could not be ; and it is, 
therefore, with great diffidence that this volume is 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 301 

submitted as a memorial of one whose life and cha- 
racter deserve more than a passing record. 

If, however, what has been done shall be the means 
of directing the attention of those for whom the 
volume has been prepared to the consideration of 
the precepts here recorded; and, above all, if those 
precepts shall be the means of influencmg them for 
good in their future course in life, — the effort will 
not have been in vain. 



INDEX. 



Abstinence, 10. 

Accident, 12. 

Academy, Groton, 168, 169. Do- 
nations by Brother William, 170, 
190, 202, 209. 

Americans, Native, 147. 

Ancestry, 1. 

Andre, Major, 165. 

Apprenticeship, 8, 258. 

Advice, Father's, 25. 

Advice, 84. 

Anxiety, 94. 

Amin Bey, 228. 

Anatomy, Study of, 165. 

Applicants, Annoyance from, 111, 
173, 201, 203. Abuse by, 185. 

Applicant, Mr. Lawrence as an, 
188. 

Appropriations for 1842, 114. 

Afflictions, 158. 

Appleton, Mrs., Death of, 138. 

Appletons, 275. 

Apprentice, Drunken, 111. 

Astronomy, Study of, 7. 

Aspirations, 110, 180. 

Attack of Sickness, 222. 

Asylum, Lunatic, 251. 

Awakening, Religious, 198, 254. 



Baldwin, 280. 

Banks, 98. 

Banner, Christian, 213. 

Barn, North, 8. 

Battle of Bunker HiU, 244. 

Birth, 1. 

Birthday, 119, 163. 

Banner, Christian, 213. 

Bequests, 215. 

Bell, Dr., 251. 

Bible, Commentary on, 167. 

Bible, The, 200. 

Bigelow, Timothy, 105. 

Blagden, Rev. Dr., Letter from, 255. 

Boat-Song, Canadian, 204. 

Book, Memorandum, 48. 

Bowdoin College, Donation by Mrs. 

Lawrence, 190. 
Boston, coraes to, 13. 
Brazer Estate, 168. 
Brazer, James, 8. 
Bridgman, Laura, 180, 244. 
Brother Abbott, 23, 24, 53, 199, 202, 

210, 212, 238. 
Brother Luther, 53. Death of, 105, 

169. 
Brother WiUiam, 24, 53, 169, 170. 

196, 204. 



304 



Brother Samuel, 15, 180. 

Brothers, Sympathy between, 104. 

Brattle-street Church, 136, 209. 

Briggs, Gov., 162. Cane and Letter 
to, 172, 224, 251. 

Bramble News, 33. 

Brooks, P. C, 207. 

Buaker-HiU Monument, 53, 61, 67, 
121. 

Business commences, 14. Princi- 
ples of, 85. 

Buxton, Lady, 241, 243, 267. Pris- 
cilla, 267. 

Butler, Dr., 261. 



Cabot, George, 129. 
Call's Stage-coach, 119. 
Castle-Building, 82. 
Caswell, Oliver, 180. 
CarroU, Charles, 219. 
Citizen, Duty of an American, 66. 
Charities, 62, 63. 
Christmas, 60. 
Charity, System in, 81, 83. 
Chancellor Kent, 100. 
Chevalier HulesiAann, 111. 
Children, Love of, 171. 
Children's luiirmary, 175. 
Church, Application to build, 190. 
Cholera Morbus, Attack of, 215. 
Charities, Amount during Life, 253. 
Christ, Cross of, 269. 
Christ, Jesus, 299. 
Clerkship, 14. 
Clerk, Letter from old, 36. 
Clergyman, Letter to blind, 236. 
Clergyman, Letter to, 223. 
Clergyman, Scotch, 266, 258. 
, Codman, Rev. Dr., 196. 
Codicil to Will, 214. 
College, Bowdoin, 169, 190. 
College, Wabash, 252. 
Colebrooke, Sir Wm., 186, 247. 



Colebrooke, Lady, 165. 
Creeds, 203. 
Cresson, Elliott, 242. 
Gushing, J. P., 165. 



D. 

Darracott, George, 124. 

Daughter, Death of, 64, 142. 

Death, Manner of, alluded to, 116. 

Davis, Honest John, 272. 

Debtors, Treatment of, 137, 194. 

Depression, 43. 

Dearborn, Gen., 280. 

Death, Contemplation of, 74. 

Death, Thoughts on sudden, 196. 

Dexter, Frauklin, 230. 

Diet, 86, 87, 269. 

Dives, a, 211. 

Doctor, 19. 

Donations, Mode of Making, 161. 

Donations, 236. 

Dmght, Rev. L., 167, 251. 

Dwight, Edmund, 275. 



E. 

Elector, Presidential, serves as, 276. 

Ellis, Judge, 46. 

Emigration, Thoughts on, 201. 

Engagement, 29. 

England, 109. 

Enjoyments, 103. 

Encouragement, 145. 

Everett, E., 124, 280. 

Exercise, Habits of, 85, 88. 

Exactness, 16, 133. 

Expenses, 61, 94, 117, 160, 181, 

207, 221, 253. 
Evil, avoids the Appearance of, 89. 

F. 

Father's Property, 15. 
Father, 53, 245. 



305 



Farwell, Capt., 3. 

Federalist, 261. 

Ferdinand and Isabella, Author of, 

183. 
FideUty to Trusts, 221. 
Foreign Children, 220. 
Friends, Recognition of, in Heaven, 

210. 
Fry, Mrs., 242. 



G. 

Gannett, Rev. Dr., 31. 
Gannett, Lines by Mrs., 32. 

Gen. , Letter to, 120. 

Gifts, 108. 

Grandchildren, Birth of, 141. 

Grandson, Letter to, 157. 

Gray, Mrs. Martha, Letter to, 162. 

Green, W. L., 195. 

Greenough, H., 280. 

Greenwood, Rev. Dr., 86. 

Groton, Visits to, 26. 

Gurney, Hannah, 242. 



H. 

Haddock, Hon. C. B., Letter to, 
248. 

Hallock, Rev. W.,222. 

Hamilton, Rev. Dr., Letters to, 212, 
223, 240. Letter from, 237. 

Happiness, 100. 

Harvard College, Donation to, by 
Brother A., 190. 

Haycock, small, 250. 

Heaven, Foretaste of, 100. 

Hofl6uan, Rev. Mr., 242. 

Home, Love of, 17, 93, 96, 203, 
265. 

Hopkins, President, first Acquaint- 
ance with, 133, 284. 

Hospital, resigns as Trustee, 82. 

Howe, Dr. S. G., 180. 

Hubbard, Judge, 196. 



Elness, 26, 37, 73. Letters an- 
nouncing, 74, 77. Comfort in, 
79, 80. 

Impressions, early religious, S3. 

Income, Fluctuations of, 181. 

Ireland, Relief to, 182. 



J. 

Jesus, Claims of, 113. 

Journey to South, 41, 43. To Cana- 
da, 58. To New York, 44. To 
New Hampshire, 77. To Wash- 
ington, 95. 



Kirk, Scotch, Doctrines of, 259. 



Lafayette, Gen., 53. 

Lameness, 224. 

Lawrence, R. M., 152, 153, 154, 
155. 

Lawrence, Luther, Death of, 105, 
106. 

Lawrence, Samuel, Gift to, 180. 

Lawrence, Major Arthur, 180. 

Lawrence Association, 182. 

Lawrence, Mrs. Abbott, 223. 

Lawrence, Amos A., 231. 

Lazarus, a, 211. 

Letter, early business, 34. 

Liberia, 242. 

Library at Williams College, Dona- 
tion of, 161, 163. 

Lothrop, Rev. Dr., 86, 284, 286. 

Lowell, Hon. John, 47. 

LoweU, Rev. Dr. C, 95, 136, 
264. 



306 



M. 

Manufactures, engages in, 47. 

Marriage, 32, 46. Advice regard- 
ing, 89, 90. 

Mason, Rev. C, 141. 

Mason, S., 142. 

Mason, J., Death of, 205. 

Matthew, Father, 213. 

McDvaine, Bishop, Letter from, 128. 

McKenzie, Capt., Letter to, 179. 
Cane from, 203. Death of, 204. 

Means, Robert, 46. 

Mechanic Apprentices' Association, 
Letter to, 132. 

Mortgage, Father's, 21. 

Mother, Letters to, 38, 92. Death 
of, 198. 

Mount Auburn, 128, 180. 



N. 

Nahant, Little, Letter from, 226, 

227. 
New England, Industry of, 71, 72. 
New Year, 79. 
Note, Cancels, 243. 
Notoriety, Dislike of, 174. 



O. 

Occupations, 67. 

Old Home, 93, 96, 107, 263. 

Old Oak, 155, 157. 



Packard, Professor, Letters to, 189, 

191, 280. 
I Parents, 2 — 6. 
Parker, R. G., Letter to, 170, 174. 
Partnership, 23. 
Partners, Letters to, 112, 128, 130, 

144, 162. 



Perkins, Col., 280. 
Philippe, Louis, 139. 
Phillips, J., Letter to, 270. 
Physician, Note to a, 197. 
Pierce, Franklin, 261, 269, 277. 
Pitcairn, Major, 245. 
Pocket-book, Text in, 146. 
Pond, Rev. Dr., 252. 
Praise, Dishke of, 138. 
Pratt, W., 165. 
Prayer, 193. In Family, 106. 
Prediction as to Native Americans, 

147. 
Presbyterianism, Scotch, 259. 
Prescott, Gen., 3. 
Prescott, Judge W., 183. 
Prescott, Madam, Letter to, 184 ; 

from, 184. 
Profits, early, 21. 
Property, Increase of, 23. 
Prudoe, Lo»d, 61, 165. 



R. 

Rainsford Island, Visit to, 96. 
Reflections, 61, 97, 99, 193, 198. 
Reminiscences, 101, 118, 164. 
Representative, elected, 46. 
Resolutions in regard to Business, 

49, 50, 91. 
Revolution, French, 69. 
RciTilsions in Business, 91, 98. 
Rhett, R. B., Letter to, 217. 
Richards, Giles, 30. Sarah, 30. 
Richardson, Capt., 8. 
Roberts, Gov., 242. 
Rules, Business, 20. 



Sabbath, Thoughts on, 80. 
Savings' Bank, Donation to, 148. 
Saviour, our, 259. 
School, 6, 8. Mather, 219. John- 
son, 170. 



307 



School, Scientific, 190. 

Scoresby, Rev. Dr., Letter to, 249. 

Scott, Gen., 270, 276. 

Seaver, Hon. Benjamin, 263. 

Self-consecration, 134. 

Serpent, Sea, 68. 

Sharp, Rev. Dr., Letters from, 

127, 151, 225, 284. 
Sharp, Brother, 129, 152. 
Shattuck, Dr., Letter from, 27. 
Shaw, R. G., 275, 276. 
Silly FeUow, 193. 
Sister K., 2. 
Sisters, Letters to, 17, 18, 42, 50, 

57, 59, 60. 
Sleigh-ride, 171, 235. 
Smith, Dr. J. V. C, 96. 
Son, Advice to, 64, 55. Illness of, 

152. Death of, 154. 
South Carolina, Letter to a Friend 

in, 260. 
Spirits, 44, 88. 
Stearns, J. A., 182. 
Stone, Rev. Dr., Letter from, 115. 
Story, Judge, Letter from, 130. 

Maxim of, 209. 
Stowe, Sirs., 268. 
Strachan, Sir John, 183. 
Stuart, Prof., Letter from, 208. 
Study, early Habits of, 15. 
Subscription Paper, 211. 
Sullivan, Gen., 2. 
Sunny Side, Mrs., 268. 
Sympathy, Letter of. 195, 



Tarbell, Thomas, 263. 
Tastes, domestic, 35. 
Taylor, Father, 85. 



Taylor, Gen., 199, 201. 

Theatre, 24. 

Ticknor, George, 280. 

Tobacco, 252, 262. 

Toby, XJncle, 261, 268. 

Tom, Uncle, 268. 

Tools, Use of, 6. 

Touro, J., 124, 125. 

Turnbull, Rev. R., Letter to, 113. 



Unitarianism, Thoughts on, 83, 211. 
Unworthiness, 83. 



V. 



Vinton, Rev. A. H., D.D., 283. 



W. 

Ware, Rev. H., 116. 
Warren, J. C, Dr., 166. 
Warren, J. M., Dr., 166. 
Washington, Gen., 81. 
Washington, Journey to, 95. 
Webster, Daniel, Correspondence 

\vith, 65, 70, 71. 
Whig Committee, Letter to, 140. 
White, Rev. C, 252. 
Wliiting, Gen., 14, 216, 219. 
Wife, niness of, 37. Letter from, 

38. Letters to, 38, 90. Last 

Writing, 40. Death of, 41. 
Williams College, Donation to, 145, 

230. Scholarships, 191. 
Winthrop, Gov., 1. 
Winthrop, Hon. R. C, Letter to, 

117. 



